THE LIBRARY
OF
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Digitized by the Internet Archive
in 2007 with funding from
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http://www.archive.org/details/delphiancoursesy01delpiala
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SYSTEMATIC
PLAN OF EDUCA-
TION. EMBRACING
THE WORLD'S PROG-
RESS AND DEVEL-
OPMENT OF THE
LIBERAL
ARTS
COUNCIL OF REVIEW
Very Rev. J. K. Brennan Missouri
CiSLE EoTiiNE, jr. A. - - - University of Minnesota
Chas. II. Caffin New York
James A. Craio, M.A., B.D., Ph.D., University of Michigan
Mrs. Sarah Platt Decker Colorado
Alcee Fortier, D.Lt. ... - Tul.ine University
RoswELi, Field Cliicago
HrucE G. Kingsley - Royal College of Organists, England
D. D. LuckEnbili,, A.B., Pn.D - University of Chicago
Kenneth McKenzie, Ph.D -
Frank B. Marsh, Ph.D. -
Dr. Hamilton Wright Mabie
W. A. Merrill, Ph.D., L.II.D.
T. M. Farrott, Ph.D. - -
Grant Siiowerman, Ph.D. -
II. C. ToLMAN, Ph.D., D.D. -
I. K. WiNC.M.A. - - -
Yale University
University of Texas
New York
University of California
Princeton University
University of Wisconsin
Vanderbilt University
Michigan
nJAiAiArAi/^iAiArAiAiAiAiAiAiAiAfAi/^iAiAirjruAifMnininiriiAiriiniAiriinirir^^^
VOL. I
THE DELPHIAN SOCIETY
Copyright 1913
BY
THE DELPHIAN SOCIETY
Chicago
Revised 1916
Revised 1919
Revised 1922
COMPOSITION. ELECTBOTYPINO. PRINTIN*
AND BINDING BY THE
W. B. CON KEY COMPANY
Hammond, Indiana
Page
The Delphian Movement viii
Prehistoric Man; Customs and Occupations. Dawn of Civilization. ..xiv
EGYPT.
Prefatory Chapter 13
Chapter I.
Its Antiquity; Story of Joseph, Physical Geography, Prehistoric
Egypt 20
Chapter II.
Sources of Egyptian History; Herodotus' Account of Egypt 31
Chapter III.
Pyramid Age; Early Egyptian Kings; Construction of Pyramids 37
Chapter IV.
Age of Darkness ; Middle Empire ; Reigns of Amenemhet I. and III. ;
Description of Labyrinth 43
Chapter V.
Egypt under the Shepherd Kings; Beginning of the New Empire;
Conquests of Thutmose 1 51
Chapter VI.
First Egyptian Queen ; Temple of Hatshepsut ; Expedition to Punt .... 57
Chapter VII.
Military Kings; Hymn of Victory; Worship of the Solar Disk;
Temple of Karnak 64
Chapter VIII.
Nineteenth Dynasty; Egypt under Ramses the Great; Twentieth
Dj^nasty ; Priest Rule ; Ethiopian Kings 72
Chapter IX.
Social Life in Egypt ; Houses, Dress, Family Life 85
Chapter X.
Sports and Recreations 96
Chapter XL
Agriculture and Cattle Raising; Arts and Crafts; Egyptian Markets;
Military Affairs 109
III
18722-^2
IV TABI*E OF CONTENTS — PART I.
Chaptes XII.
Page
Schools and Education ; Egyptian Literature 112
Chapter XIII.
Religion of Ancient Egypt; Hymn to the Nile; Egyptian Temples and
Ceremonies 119
Chapter XIV.
Art and Decoration 133
Chapter XV.
Tombs and Burial Customs 188
Chapter XVI.
Excavations in Egypt; Discoveries of W. M. Flinders Petrie 144
Descriptions of Egypt.
Description of the Nile 153
Feast of Neith 155
Karnak 159
Memphis 161
Hymn to the God Ra 163
Egyptian Literature.
An Old Kingdom Book of Proverbs 164
The Voyage of the Soul 16K
The Adventures of the Exile Sanehat 171
The Song of the Harper 179
Present Day Egypt.
Alexandria 181
Cairo 182
Egyptian Museum 185
Suez Canal 187
BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA.
Prefatory Chapter 193
Chapter I.
Early Civilization of Asia; Recovery of Forgotten Cities 201
Chapter II.
Sources of Babylonian and Assyrian History; Physical Geography... 211
Chapter III.
Prehistoric Chaldea; Charms and Talismans; Semitic Invasion 218
Chapter IV.
City-States Before the Rise of Babylon; Hymn to the Moon-God 227
Chapter V.
Dominance of Babylon 232
TABLE OF CONTENTS — PART I. V
Chapter VI.
Page
Beginnings of Assyrian Empire; Conquest of Asshumatsirpal 237
Chapter VII.
Assyria a Powerful Empire; Hebrew Account of the War with
Assyria 245
Chapter VIII.
Last Years of Assyrian Dominance 256
Chapter IX.
Chaldean Empire in Babylonia 264
Chapter X.
Social Life in Mesopotamia. The Babylonian and Assyrian Compared ;
Their Houses and Family Life 270
Chapter XI.
Morality of the Ancient Babylonians 276
Chapter XII.
Literature and Learning ; Deluge Story 283
Chapter XIII.
Clothing Worn by Assyrians and Babylonians; Their Food 293
Chapter XIV.
Architecture and Decoration 300
Chapter XV.
Religious Customs 307
Chapter XVI.
The Laboring Classes ; Professions 317
Chapter XVII.
The Medes 328
Chapter XVIII.
Condition of Persia Before the Age of Cyrus ; Cyrus the Great and
the Persian Empire 332
Chapter XIX.
War with Greece 340
Chapter XX.
Manners and Customs of the Persians; Their Religion 346
Chapter XXI.
Contributions of Babylonia, Assyria and Persia to Modem
Civilization 357
VI TABI,^ Ot CONTENTS — PART I.
Assyrian Literature,
Page
Chaldean Account of the Deluge 361
Descent of Ishtar to Hades 367
Gyges and Assurbanipal 871o
Purity 371c
Zoroaster's Prayer 371rf
THE HEBREWS AND THEIR NEIGHBORS.
Chaptee I.
Syria 872
Chaptee II.
The Land of Phoenicia; Reign of Hiram; Invasion of Asshurbanipal 378
Chaptee III.
Phoenician Colonies and Commerce 390
Chapter IV.
Occupations and Industries; Literature and Learning; Religion 399
Chapter V.
Physical Geography of Palestine; Climate and Productivity 408
Chapter VI.
Effects of Geographical Conditions upon the Hebrews 418
Chapter VII.
Sources of Hebrew History 426
Chapter VIII.
Condition of the Hebrews Prior to Their Occupation of Canaan 434
Chapter IX.
Era of the Judges 441
Chapter X.
Morality of the Early Hebrews 448
Chapter XL
Causes Leading to the Establishment of the Kingdom. David's
Lament; His Reign. Solomon Rules; King Solomon and the Bees 453
Chapter XII.
After the Division of the Kingdom ;" End of Israel 469
Description of Illustrations 483
FULL PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS
PART I.
Page
Illuminated Missal Frontispiece
Distant View of the Pyramids 44
Near View of Pyramids and Sphinx 68
Tourists Scaling the Great Pyramid 92
Column and Pylon of Karnak 124
Beautiful Island of Philea 148
Windows of a Harem 172
Ship of the Desert (Photogravure) 192
Winged Lion 236
Musicians and Attendants in the Garden of Asshurbanipal 284
Sword-Maker of Damascus 348
The River Jordan 392
Jappa Harbor 432
Roses of Sharon 464
Map of Ancient Egypt vi
«n
THE DELPHIAN MOVEMENT
wo THOUSAND years before the sight of a
new world burst upon the view of the Genoese
mariner, there existed in north-central Greece a
sanctuary famous in three continents. Located
in mountainous Phocis, in a natural amphithe-
ater, overhung by frowning rocks and reached only through
mysterious caves, was the Oracle of Delphi. Here in remote
times Apollo was believed to reveal his wishes to men
through the medium of a priestess, speaking under the in-
fluence of vaporous breath which rose from a yawning fis-
sure. Her utterances were not always coherent and were
interpreted to those seeking guidance by Apollo's priests.
As its fame spread, the number of visitors to Delphi in-
creased. More priests were needed to counsel and advise.
Although the first blind faith in earlier deities lessened, the
prestige of Delphi was nevertheless preserved. Apollo's
priests became better versed in the affairs of Greece and the
surrounding countries; their assistants became familiar with
all vital issues, and thus intelligent replies were given to un-
ceasing inquiries. In time the Greek divinities were almost
forgotten and Christianity became the state religion, yet the
Oracle of Delphi continued to draw men unto it until the
fifth Christian century.
Ancient writers have left us abundant accounts of jour-
neyings made thither by potentates and kings, and have de-
scribed at length the rich offerings left by them in gratitude.
The humble were seldom mentioned by early writers and it
remained for the last few years to bring to light little leaden
tablets — valueless from the standpoint of plunderers, earth-
covered and revealed only by the excavator's spade — silent
testimonials of appeals made to the oracle by the common
people.
VIII
THE DELPHIAN MOVEMENT IX
Perhaps at first thought we find the influence which the
Delphian oracle exerted for more than a thousand years
throughout Greece unaccountable, but upon reflection we per-
ceive that it held its power because it was the best answer that
epoch could give to man's eternal need for greater wisdom
than his individual experience can provide. It may fittingly
be compared to the influence of the Church in the Middle
Ages. To it were referred alike questions of international
policy, and the private affairs of humble citizens.
There is no doubt but that implicit faith directed the first
visitors to Delphi, and beyond question this faith to some
extent survived. The peasant accepted literally the presence
of deity, but there have been in all ages the discerning who
have distinguished between the symbol and that symbolized,
and certainly the keen, alert Greeks did not remain blind
adherents of antiquated conceptions. The wisdom of the
Delphian priests was revered and their judgments accepted
much in the same way as were those of the seers who taught
the children of Israel at the city gates, so that the Oracle
of Delphi still remained potent — a name with which to con-
jure— long after the belief that the deity himself was present
had given place to another.
Today, the number who ask "Whence cometh wisdom, and
where is the place of understanding?" is more than all who ever
sought the offices of the priestess on her tripod. We have
learned that not gaseous exhalations, but a thorough under-
standing of the past, will reveal the secrets of the future, and
that these "oracles" are best interpreted by thoughtful groups,
instead of by one frenzied prophetess. The name Delphian
was chosen for this national educational movement because
we too are seekers for wisdom, and we would not lose the
spell of the storied past, as we renew the age-old quest.
E^ch new decade brings new needs, and the conditions of
fifty years ago were wholly different from those confronting
us today. Ours is an age characterized by intensity, strenuous
effort and tireless exertion. Leisure seems to have disap-
peared from our national life and to be remembered only
when reviewing pleasant stories of other times. Educators
complain that we are neglecting the wisdom of the past — that
the enduring thoughts of men as preserved to us in their
X th^ worijj's progress.
writings have ceased to be familiar. The thoughtful deplore
the loss of culture, courtesy and old-time chivalry. Fre-
quently the critics fail to look beneath the surface for reasons
leading to the very evident result The truth is that in no
previous age have the hearts of people been more sensitive
to injustice, more united for fair dealing between man and
man, more eager for the best the world can offer. It is only
that the cultural methods which served in the past are unsuited
to our machine-driven civilization. Of course time will adjust
this, but we who are living in the transition period must meet
modern conditions with modern methods.
At present people accumulate fine libraries and rarely
read them; for their shelves they seek the best — for their di-
version the lightest and most transient literature. Few are
there who do not dream of a happy time when it shall be
their delight to browse among their books and find com-
panionship in them. Still the years fly by relentlessly and
many who are not mere theorists are sounding a warning:
This time so fondly anticipated will never come to many of
the present generation; seize today; snatch a brief moment
for the consideration of enduring thoughts; do not rrierely
provide for the temporal wants and leave the soul famishing.
Dr. Eliot, late president of Harvard, in repeated lectures and
addresses has voiced this crying need.
"From the total training during childhood there should
result in the child a taste for interesting and improving read-
ing, which should direct and inspire its subsequent intellectual
life. That schooling which results in this taste for good
reading, however unsystematic or eccentric the schooling may
have been, has achieved a main end of elementary education ;
and that schooling which does not result in implanting this
permanent taste has failed. Guided and animated by this
impulse to acquire knowledge, and exercise his imagination
through reading, the individual will continue to educate him-
self all through life. Without that deep-rooted impulsion he
will soon cease to draw on the accumulated wisdom of the
past and the new resources of the present, and, as he grows
older, he will live in a mental atmosphere which is always
growing thinner and emptier. Do we not all know many
people who seem to live in a mental vacuum — to whom, in-
THE DELPHIAN MOVEMENT XI
deed, we have great difficulty in attributing immortality, be-
cause they apparently have so little life except that of the
body? Fifteen minutes a day of good reading would have
given any one of this multitude a really human life/'^
To meet this condition, which prevails throughout the
length and breadth of our land, to stimulate a deeper interest,
quicken a latent appreciation and facilitate the use of brief
periods of freedom for self-improvement, the Delphian So-
ciety was organized and the Delphian plan of education
mapped out.
Believing that only a comprehensive course could meet
the requirements of the day and prove acceptable to a large
number of people, the Delphian Society has included those
subjects which are now offered in the curriculums of our
leading colleges and universities — history, literature, phil-
osophy, poetry, fiction, drama, art, ethics, music. Mathe-
matics, being in its higher forms essential to few, has been
omitted; languages, requiring the aid of a teacher, and such
sciences as make laboratories necessary, are not included.
None of these subjects possesses purely cultural qualities.
Technical information has no place whatever in such a scheme.
The branches of human interest which remain are those of
vital importance to everyone.
Not only is the list of subjects widely inclusive, but the
method of treatment has been carefully considered. Finding
the beginnings of most modern activities in antiquity, the
Delphian Course presents the gradual unfoldment of each
subject from earliest times to our own. The distance be-
tween an imitation of the hunt, as found among the diver-
sions of primitive people, and a modern play is great, and
yet no complete idea of the latter can be acquired without
some conception of dramatic origins. The crude picture
drawn upon the sooty hide which formed a hut in early times
and the crowning masterpiece of a Raphael present extremes,
and yet he who would follow the gradual growth of painting
realizes that each has its place in the progress of art. Only
in comparatively recent times has the value of each link
which forms the long chain of development been understood.
No amount of heterogeneous reading can compare with the
* Eliot: Educational Reform.
XII THE WORI,d's progress.
systematic tracing of one subject from its early manifesta-
tions to its present forms.
Correlation of topics presents wonderful possibilities. If
we become interested, for example, in society as portrayed in
the earliest English novels, how much more shall we then
appreciate the canvases of Hogarth, which depict the same
social conditions. If the age of idealism in literature be
under consideration, the productions of contemporaneous
artists grow to have for us a new significance.
It is a mistake to imagine that relaxation and diversion
are obtainable only from reading matter of the day. Oscar
Kuhms calls attention to the fact that "to spend hours over
illustrated magazines, Sunday newspapers, and the majority
of popular novels, has very little to do with the art of read-
ing in its larger sense." To a far greater extent than is gen-
erally imagined, the inordinate reading of magazines accounts
for the host of superficial readers of our generation. To see
how temporary is their interest one needs only to examine
journals three or four years old.
The pleasures of travel may be greatly enhanced by defi-
nite knowledge of countries visited — their recorded past, the
manner of life of those who dwelt within them and* those
now populating them ; ruins, old temples, surviving art, make
slight appeal to those wholly unfamiliar with the ages that
produced them. The enjoyment of a play is more poignant
for the one who has in mind the changes which plays and
playhouses have witnessed. There is something impressive
in the thought that for ages audiences have been thus held
spellbound. Four centuries before the Christian era impos-
ing dramas and keenly satirical comedies were given before
larger assemblies than modern theatres could accommodate.
Only in modern times has a curtain separated the players
and spectators. Formerly the favored sat upon the stage it-
self; in the Elizabethan playhouse the majority stood
throughout an entire performance. Sentences in Shakes-
peare's plays are meaningless without taking these facts into
account. Some extended acquaintance with pictures would
put an end to comments made not infrequently by critics that
the spectacle of groups of people today in attendance upon an
art exhibit supplies an astonishing sight. The majority —
THE DELPHIAN MOVEMENT XIII
SO it has been stated — find a number in their catalogues,
search frantically about for a picture so designated, and when
they discover it, sigh with satisfaction and begin the search
for another — "for all the world as though they were indulg-
ing in a simple hunting game!" Why Raphael painted so
many Madonnas, why Watteau seems to have known only
the gay and carefree — these are simple questions which many
might find perplexing to explain adequately.
The traveler whose time in a foreign land is limited does
not seek the commonplace and unattractive; he does not try
to compass all a city might have to show in the brief period
he can spend there ; rather, he obtains the guidance of those
more familiar with the locality, and gives his attention to the
best it has to offer. So if our time for reading and self-im-
provement must be brief, we shall find small satisfaction in
wasting it blindly searching for what may satisfy. Educa-
tors are usually less pressed by insidious cares and more free
to give their devotion to favorite subjects.
Finally, let us remember that we are not reading chiefly for
information. We read to develop our insight into the mystery
of life ; to gain an individual viewpoint ; to establish our stand-
ards of conduct and modify our standard of judgment. Read-
ing which is mere diversion can never bestow this power. It is
for this reason the Delphian plan concentrates upon the knowl-
edge whose value has been proved by time. This is the infor-
mation which will provide the true perspective for the drama,
the art, the Hterature and the history of our time. From the
vantage point of familiarity with it, we can discern more
clearly the merits of what is new, and best of all, we shall
make the pleasing discovery that through ceasing to read only
for diversion, all of our reading has become more diverting.
The Delphian chapter programs have been planned to bring
about individual development through group activity.
Through the group are gained, poise, practice in self-expres-
sion, and the broadened outlook of differing viewpoints. The
ideal of the society is that each Delphian chapter shall be a
means for broadening and deepening the interests of every
member in all things which build up the community, in higher
education, personal improvement and social progress.
PRIMITIVE DRAWING OF llAN.
PREHISTORIC MAN
fj^ HE word prehistoric means, literally, before his-
^*^ tory begins, and by prehistoric man we mean
those human beings who lived upon the earth
before records were kept. History, properly so
called, does not begin until civilization is
'reached. The roaming of savage people over land in
search of food has little or no importance for the student of
history, although knowledge of a people in its savage state may
throw some light upon its future development. While prehis-
toric ages are the concern of the archaeologist rather than the
historian, we shall find that historic ages owe a great debt to
prehistoric ages, and with this aspect of the matter the historian
has deep interest.
The science of geology teaches us that the earth has not
always possessed its present familiar appearance. On the con-
trary, countless years were consumed in molding it to its pres-
ent shape, and even yet it is undergoing constant change. It
is supposed that in the beginning all was a chaotic heap of Mat-
ter. In the words of a familiar story : "The earth was with-
out form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the
deep."
Whether the first cause of motion was direct Divine will
or the working out of purely scientific law is not our province
to determine here. Speaking in terms of geological record,
the whole chaotic mass grew rounder and rounder, flattening
slightly at the poles, or the ends of the axis. Gradually the
surface of the mass cooled, and cooling, formed the earth's
crust. Because it did not cool evenly, but shrunk to fit the
still molten mass, this surface or crust was left with deep
crevasses and higher ridges. This marked irregularity was
further increased by mighty upheavals caused by pressure
of heat from within. Thus were many of the mountains
formed.
XIV
PREHISTORIC MAN- XV
This process, so slightly indicated here, extended over a
vast period of time. It is supposed that later, for a protracted
period, rain fell. When the age of rain had passed, the deep
depressions in the earth's surface were left filled with water —
our present oceans and some of the seas. It would be im-
possible for us to review rapidly all the stages through which
the earth passed in its making. Suffice it to say that conditions
upon it were not always favorable to* life as we know it. In
course of long geological ages — ^perhaps millions and millions
of years — forests of trees, plants, shrubs and flowers sprang
up and covered the bare earth. Last of all, probably, man
appeared. How all these things came about no one under-
stands, but it is generally accepted that they occurred in an order
similar to that just given. It would be useless for us to inquire
into all the reasons that have led to these conclusions, but the
most important one has been evidences within the earth itself.
Men who work deep down in mines know that as they
descend lower and lower, the temperature rises, until there is
a noticeable difiference between the temperature at the entrance
of a mine and at its lowest point. Moreover, not infrequently
volcanoes pour forth streaming lava, smoke and fire accom-
panying the eruption. While such evidences lead to the con-
clusion that the temperature of its interior is very high, still
there are many reasons for believing that the earth is a solid
mass. From the examination of the various earth strata, their
composition and the evidences each bears of the conditions under
which it was formed, we learn of periods of rain, heat and cold
prevailing. All these facts belong to the realm of geology how-
ever, and concern us here only as they have concerned the pro-
gress of mankind. These same earth layers or strata which pre-
serve eloquent testimony regarding the earth's development, con-
tain also remains of prehistoric men — men who lived in the far
away time before records were made and of which the rocks
alone give testimony.
Of the beginnings of the human race we know little.
Many scientists, notably Darwin and his followers, have sought
to show that man evolved from some lower animal life, in a way
similar to that in which we find some plant or flower perfected
from inferior origin. Whether the theory of man's evolution
from some lower animal will ever be shown to be true the future
XVI THE world's progress.
alone can tell, even though the scholarly world today has gen-
erally accepted the evolutionary view of life and the world.
Buried within the earth along river-beds, around cliffs,
in mounds and many other places, have been found remains
of primitive man. While the beginnings of the human race,
as has been said, are utterly unknown, the earliest stage of
which we have knowledge has been called the Paleolithic Age, —
the age of the River-drift Man.
Whether we accept the theory of man's evolution from the
lower animal kingdom or not, we must admit that the earliest
Paleolithic people of whom we have knowledge differed but
little from the wild beasts. They lived in caves along rivers, —
natural retreats where wild animals might have taken refuge.
They lived on berries, roots, fish and such small game as they
could kill by blows. They did not cook their food, but devoured
raw meat much as did the wild beasts. They did not even bury
their dead. From the stones accessible to them they selected
their weapons, chipping them roughly. The crude weapons
of this period have given it the name of the Rough Stone Age.
The Paleolithic man, or man of the Rough Stone age, did
not try to tame the beasts he encountered. He stood in great
fear of those with whose strength he was not able to combat.
He feared especially strange beings like himself, and with his
family dwelt apart from others so far as possible. He did
not plant nor gather stores for the future ; thus when food failed
in his vicinity, he was obliged to roam on until he came upon
a fresh supply of acorns, berries, roots and small animals. Any
cave served for his dwelling. He protected himself from
cold by a covering made from the skin of the beast he had
slain. He had few belongings and these were scarcely valued,
being easily replaced.
It is not difficult to see why the man of the Rough Stone
Age preferred to live by the side of some river. In early times,
before paths were worn through the forests, travel was easiest
along the river bed. Food was more abundant here, for fish
inhabited the streams and thither also animals came to drink,
and in the reeds by the river's side, birds and wild fowl breeded.
Morever, man was a timid creature and feared to venture far
inland.
From all this we see that man in his primitive state gave
PREHISTORIC MAN. XVII
little promise of his future development. For how long a time
he continued in this stage, we cannot estimate. Yet we find
a decided improvement in the latter part of this Paleolithic Age,
for fire and its uses became known. This brought about a
wonderful change.
The man of the Paleolithic or Rough Stone Age was fol-
lowed by the man of the Neolithic Age — ^the cliff dweller. He
exchanged a home by the river for one higher up ; secure in
some elevated cliff, the Neolithic man lived, away from molest-
ing beasts. Again, the stone weapons were greatly improved.
No longer were they rough ; on the contrary, they were now
polished smooth. Ingenious from the beginning, man found
that sharp edges of stone were more useful than blunt ones,
that smooth handles were more convenient than irregular stones
with no handles at alL For this reason, this period has been
called the Smooth Stone Age. Other improvements no less
momentous had been wrought. Food was now cooked, and as
a result, man grew a little less ferocious. He had less fear of
the wild beasts than before, and domesticated some of them.
No longer was he wholly dependent upon such food as nature
provided, for he had learned how to sow grain and gather it.
He had learned how to fashion bowls and other receptacles of
clay. He now buried his dead with weapons and other useful
articles, proving that he believed that the dead still had need of
such things. We must not, however, suppose that he believed
in immortality, for the evidence shows that his conception of
a hereafter was very vague. In most cases the care for and fear
of the dead ceased a few years after their burial. Before the
close of this period men had journeyed far from abject savagery.
Finally we come to the Metal — sometimes called the Bronze
— Age. The discovery of metal proved the greatest boon,
for now it was possible to make sharp tools and weapons.
Hitherto the mere cutting down of a tree had taken a prodigious
time. With a bronze ax, it could be quickly accomplished.
Progress made rapid strides after this invaluable discovery.
Nor this alone. Having learned to domesticate the beasts,
men passed from a purely hunting into a pastoral stage. Sow^
ing and reaping made it desirable and it became convenient to
have a fixed habitation. Instead of dwelling apart, it proved
safest to settle in hamlets or villages. In other words, man had
become civilized, and with the dawn of civilization we find the
dawn of history.
I — 2— Sept. 23
XVIII THE WORLD S PROGRESS.
From this cursory view of the three important stages in
prehistoric times, it is possible to derive mistaken notions.
For example, there was never a time when stone was the
only material available to man. Wood, ivory and shell were
probably always known and frequently procurable. Neither is
it to be supposed that each of these periods broke off abruptly
or that they extended over all lands simultaneously. Quite on
the contrary, stages in human development are never abrupt,
and changes come about unnoticed. In nature results are
slowly attained and there are no sharp distinctions between
them. The three divisions of Rough and Smooth Stone and
Metal Ages refer to conditions of progress — not to periods
of time. The Egyptians had passed through all three stages
before the dawn of history ; the American Indians were in
the Smooth Stone Age when Columbus discovered America ;
and in Central Australia there are tribes today just emerging
from the Smooth Stone period. The rapidity with which a
tribe passes from one to another of these stages depends upon
the natural conditions of the country, contact with outside
peoples and many other factors.
When written records enable us to weigh the true and
the false, to sift out fact from fiction and legend from verified
event, several nations had come into possession of a very fair
degree of civilization. They had settled homes in towns and
villages, recognized some form of government, understood the
uses of fire, planted crops and garnered them, spun, wove
and made pottery ; they had attained considerable skill in the
working of metals, had domestic animals and cultivated plants ;
they possessed a spoken, and sometimes a written, language
and had attained no little skill in decorative art. A rich legacy
was this for historic ages. Surely there Is interest for the his-
torian in this remote time that lies clouded still by much
uncertainty. Let us consider some of these more important
attainments and try to see how naturally men grew to master
them and how in obscure ages the human race travelled so far
on the high road to progress.
Discovery oe Fire.
We have already noted that there was a time when fire was
unknown. How then could the Paleolithic man, thrown wholly
PREHISTORIC MAN. XIX
upon his own observation and resources, come upon this dis-
covery, which was to work such changes for the future ? Only
from his observance of natural phenomena. When storms
swept over desert and plain, vivid lightning flashed, and oc-
casionally some tree was struck by the bolt and flamed up,
greatly to the astonishment and alarm of the unknowing mind.
At other times, volcanic eruptions occurred, and dry leaves and
forests caught on fire from flying cinders. In the natural
course of events, men soon found that the warmth of burning
wood was agreeable, that fire at night allowed them to keep
watch over possible invaders — whether man or wild beasts —
and that the interior of a tree's trunk could be more easily
removed by burning than by laborious scraping out with stone
implements. After man had tasted roast flesh, a desire for
cooked food was probably developed. Such a valued possession
as fire proved, needed to be carefully tended, and when it was
exhausted, human ingenuity set to work to create it anew.
It is not unlikely that sparks occasionally struck out from flint
when it was being chipped into shape for a weapon or imple-
ment. Necessity and desire have always worked wonders, and
primitive man learned shortly to produce the vital spark, both
by friction and by drilling.
The art of fire-making once mastered, many innovations
were consequent upon it. Some fixed habitation was necessary
if the coals were to be kept covered from day to day, and from
meal to meal. Cooked foods gradually took the place of raw
ones ; in cold weather the family grew to gather around the
fire, where meals were prepared and warmth was to be found.
When the family, clan or tribe removed to a new home, coals
were carried to kindle the fire upon the new hearth. When
men journeyed abroad in the night, they carried torches to guide
them ; when they labored at home, fire grew indispensable
for baking their clay pottery, smelting their ore, and manifold
purposes.
While fire became one of man's aids, it wrought a decided
change in the position of woman. Before its discovery, man
and woman had probably gone side by side, sharing alike dan-
gers and hardships. With its acquisition, some one was re-
quired to stay to watch lest it go out, and thus was developed
the fireside and the home. " The fire has made the home. We
XX THE world's progress.
have heard much in these later days about woman's position.
We are assured that she has not all her rights. Now, there
can be little doubt that the primitive woman had all her rights.
It is probable that she was as free as her husband to kill the
wild beasts, catch fish, fight her savage neighbors, eat the raw
meat which she tore by main strength from the carcass of the
lately slain beast. The beginning of woman's slavery was the
discovery of the fire. The value of fire known and the need
of feeding it recognized, it became necessary that someone
should stay by it to tend it. Notwithstanding the fact that
woman had all her rights and was free to come and go as
she would, it was still true that, on account of children and
certain physical peculiarities, the woman was more naturally
the one who would remain behind to care for the feeding of
the flame. Before that, men and women wandered from place
to place, thoughtless of the night. After that, a place was fixed
to which man returned after the day's hunt. It was the
beginning of the home."^
The House.
The man of the Paleolithic Age crept into any cave that
offered shelter from the storm and molesting beasts. Such
caves were plentiful along the river's bank. Here today, else-
where tomorrow, little heed was given to the particular shelter
in which he took refuge. With the possession of fire, a fixed
home became desirable. Even so, caves still remain the homes
of men for a long period of time.
The Neolithic man sought an abode farther away from the
main highway — the river. In cliffs towering above the river
bed — sometimes away from streams altogether, he scooped out
a cave similar to the ones occupied by his ancestors. Thus in
many countries remains are found of a race of cliff-dwellers.
In ancient Greece, for example, have been found evidences of
people living thus, and Indians in Mexico and Arizona three
thousand years later were discovered in similar dwellings.
With a settled life, and cultivation of the soil, man fre-
quently was forced to provide a home for himself. The
material from which he made it depended upon the re-
sources of the locality. In Egypt and Babylonia, sun-baked
» Starr : Some First Steps in Human Progress, p. 28.
PREHISTORIC MAN. XXI
mud huts afforded the simplest, least expensive structures, both
in point of time and labor. Among pastoral tribes, tents
formed of animal skins sewed together were easiest to provide.
This was the usual shelter also of the American Indians and
other hunting tribes. The Laplander found cakes of ice suited
for his home, w^hile man in the tropics quickly constructed a
shelter from the huge palm leaves, available on every hand.
" Of all places for studying construction of huts, Africa
is the very best. There one may see samples of everything
that can be thought of in the way of circular houses; built
of straw, sticks, leaves, matting ; of one room or of many ;
large or small ; crude or wonderfully artistic and carefully
made. They may be permanent constructions to be occupied
for years or temporary shelter for a single night ; they may
consist of frameworks made of light poles over which are
thrown mats or sheets of various materials and which after
using can be taken apart, packed away, and transported."^
From lightly built, temporary dwellings, it was but a short
step to the more substantial, more enduring ones. Stone
houses, dwellings made of timber and of brick, as the country
afforded, replaced the earlier homes, and when written records
bring the full light of knowledge upon the life of nations, in
the matters of constructing dwelling places, several peoples
had become proficient.
Food.
It would be difficult to discover any plant or animal life
which had not served at some period for food. Primitive
man knew nothing about harmful plants, and only by long
experience did he learn to avoid such as worked him woe.
No insect or animal is so repulsive but that it has been appro-
priated by the food-hunter in some age and country, and things
today which we would refuse in time of distress were used
as a matter of course by earlier people.
Nature supplied acorns, berries, roots, fruits, fish and plenty
of game. All these articles were at first eaten in their native
state. When fire became well known, cooked foods grew in
favor. It is supposed that these were at first roasted. To sus-
pend meat over a fire or make a large opening in the ground
» Starr ; Some First Steps in Human Progress, p. 151.
XXII THE world's progress.
cover the floor with stones, heat these very hot, then remove the
fire and bake the food, these are the most primitive — as well,
perhaps, as the most satisfactory-v -ways known to us. Boiling
was probably a later method, and this was not done as we
boil food today. Rather, stones were heated very hot and
tossed into kettles of water. In this way the water was
brought to a boiling point and the food cooked.
Cultivated Plants.
Before men learned to cultivate plants and to domesticate
animals, subsistence was always an uncertain matter. They
roamed about in one vicinity until nature could no longer sup-
ply their needs, then left the exhausted land to recover itself
while new territory afforded means for satisfying hunger.
After fire became such a potent factor, as we have seen, a
fixed abode was desirable. It fell to the lot of women to stay
and tend the hearth. Shut off from the long expeditions
undertaken by men, they soon learned to make as much as
possible of the space around about their homes. Sticks were
sometimes placed around plants or bushes to protect them from
the careless step until their fruits matured. Occasionally plants
were dug up and replanted nearer the hut. The garden and
grain field were but natural results of this spirit of husbanding
the stores provided by mother earth.
While women were the first to domesticate plants in the
simple way just indicated, not much came of it until men
adopted the idea and carried it further. With sharp sticks
they scratched the soil and with the help of animals they trod
in the seeds. Irrigation was sometimes needed — as in Egypt
— to insure good crops. Thus from slight beginnings de-
veloped the agriculture of the world. With reasonable labor
and painstaking, the tiller of the soil could be sure of a living
for himself and his family, and before historic records illumine
the life of several nations, farming was well understood.
Indeed it is safe to say that until very recent times methods
followed by tillers of the soil in quite a number of countries
advanced very little upon those of the prehistoric man.
It is interesting to trace the history of present day foods,
grains, vegetables and fruits, with the attempt to ascertain
where each was native. All have been greatly improved by
PREHISTORIC MAN. XXIII
cultivation and not alone our varieties, but even distinct fruits
and plants have resulted from man's propagation. Often the
original species have been vastly improved. For example,
the potato was a native of Chili. Found there in the sixteenth
century of our era, it was described as " watery, insipid, but
with no bad taste when cooked." It is supposed that it was
taken from some Spanish ship to Virginia, and in the latter
part of the same century carried to Europe. Its cultivation
has spread over many countries, and from a small, watery
tuber it has been brought to large size, mealiness and taste
agreeable to the palate. Even today it flourishes in its wild
state in Chili and Peru.
The cabbage was once a weed, growing on rocks by the
seashore. By man's care it has been developed to the vegetable
widely used today ; moreover, its blossom has been exag-
gerated until a wholly new vegetable in the form of the cauli-
flower is the result.
" When we visit a vegetable garden or see fresh, attractive
fruits offered in market or inspect the wonders shown upon the
tables of county fairs and agricultural shows, we seldom
realize how truly they are all the work of man. . . .
" One of the most wonderful illustrations of what man
can do in changing nature is seen in the case of the peach.
Some time, long ago, perhaps in Western Asia, grew a wild
tree which bore fruits, at the center of which were the hardest
of hard pits, containing the bitterest of kernels ; over this hard
stone was a thin layer of flesh — ^bitter, stringy, with almost
no juice, and which, as it ripened, separated, exposing to view
the contained seed ; such was nature's gift. Man taking it
found that it contained two parts which might by proper
treatment be made of use for food — the thin external pulp
and the bitter inner pit. He has improved both. Today we
eat the luscious peaches with their thick, soft, richly-flavored
juicy flesh — they are one product of man's patient ingenuity.
Or we take the soft shelled almond with its sweet kernel ; it
is the old pit improved and changed by man : in the almond,
as it is raised at present, we care nothing for the pulp and it
has almost vanished. The peach and almond are the same
in nature ; the differences they now betray are due to man."*
"Starr: Some First Steps in Human Progress, p. 80.
XXIV THE world's progress.
Many of the grains were known and grown by prehistoric
man. Millet, wheat and barley were known in earliest recorded
times in Egypt; these grains were also cultivated before his-
toric times. Oats and rye were early plant products. Corn
was native to America and unknown to the antiquity of the Old
World. Several of our vegetables, such as the radish, carrot,
turnip, beet and onion, were early grown for food. The lemon,
orange, fig and olive were all native to Asia. Many flowers are
mentioned by early writers and they too were unquestionably
carefully tended in remote times. It is a subject for pleasant
investigation to find out where flowers, cultivated in some
countries, grow wild in others.
Domestication oe Animals.
Desiring to provide food for time of want, primitive man
learned to keep a wounded animal instead of at once killing
it. Quite naturally it might come about that such a creature
would grow less wild and become a pet. To secure a supply of
meat without exertion, enclosures were probably thrown
around herds of goats, deer or sheep. Ingenious man soon
seized upon these half tamed beasts to help him in his work.
Their use being proven, he would not rest until he had tamed
them to his hand. The dog was the first dumb friend of men,
accompanying them upon the hunt and aiding in bringing
game to bay. The oldest friend, the dog, has also proven the
most faithful of the animal kingdom. When history dawned,
the dog, cow, sheep, goat, donkey, and pig were already
domesticated. The horse was less commonly known in remote
times. All these animals were originally small and not to
be compared with their present day descendants.
Dress in Prehistoric Times.
Among primitive people dress is invariably a simple matter.
In warm countries little clothing is needed, and even in colder
lands, ornaments are valued above mere protection from the
elements. It has been well established that love of decoration
has been a powerful factor with primitive tribes, and that to
this passion the habit of wearing clothing can largely be
traced. Skins of wild beasts were often used by early men as
protection from the cold, but it will be remembered that the
PREHISTORIC MAN. XXV
Indians found by early discoverers in America were ver> scant-
ily clad, although furs were available on every hand. Yet
the Indian, who braved the winter's blast unclad, was eager
to barter his all for glass beads, scarlet cloth, or little trinkets
with which he could ornament himself. The habits of dif-
ferent tribes and peoples have differed considerably ; some
have adopted clothing earlier than others ; some still go un-
clad. Generally speaking, we may note that during the hunting
stage, if men have worn clothing except for ornamentation,
it has been the skins of animals ; as spinning and weaving
have become known, coarse, home-made stuffs have come
into use. In Egypt, linens were early woven; in northern
countries, woolen stuffs were made. Feathers, furs, fabrics
woven of grasses or reeds, leaves, shells, teeth, tusks and
metal ornaments have held varying favor for decorative pur-
poses.
Art.
At first thought it seems surprising that art can be ulti-
mately traced back to the self-ornamentation of the savage ;
yet this is probably true. The earliest people of whom we
know loved to paint their bodies ; the American Indians made
ready for feast or war by painting their bodies in startling
colors, and the tribes lowest today in the social scale — tribes
of Central Australia — have a similar practice. Dark skinned
tribes have frequently painted themselves with white ; fair
skinned tribes with dark colors. The use of colors among
primitive peoples is an interesting study, and it is significant
to note that red has always been a favorite.
" Red — and particularly yellowish red — is the favorite
color of the primitive as it is the favorite color of nearly all
peoples. We need only observe our children to satisfy our-
selves how little taste on this point has changed. In every
box of water colors the saucer that contains the cinnabar red
is the first one emptied ; and 'if a child expresses a particular
liking for a color, it is nearly always a bright dazzling red.
Even adults, notwithstanding the modern impoverishment and
blunting of the color sense, still, as a rule, feel the charm of
red.' ... It may be questioned whether the strong effect
of red is called out by the direct impression of the color, or
XXVI THE world's progress.
by certain associations. Many animals have a feeling for
red similar to that of man. Every child knows that the sight
of a red cloth drives oxen and turkeys into the most passion-
ate excitement. . . . As to the primitive peoples, one
circumstance is here significant above all others. Red is the
color of blood, and men see it, as a rule, precisely when their
emotional excitement is greatest — in the heat of the chase and
of the battle. In the second place, all the ideas that are
associated with the use of the red color come strongly into
play — recollections of the excitement of the dance and combat.
Notwithstanding all these considerations, painting with red
would hardly have been so generally diffused in the lowest
stages of civilization if the red coloring material had not been
everywhere so easily and so abundantly procurable. Probably
the first red with which the primitive. man painted himself
was nothing else than the blood of the wild beast or the enemy
he had slain. At present most of the decoration is done with
a red ochre, which is very abundant nearly everywhere, and
is commonly obtained through exchange by those tribes in
whose territory it is wanting."*
The difficulty found in this means of decoration is that it
is not lasting. However skillfully the savage covers himself
with solid coloring or design, a short time only and his labor
is effaced. To overcome this trouble, tattooing was devised.
By this means the color was placed beneath the skin and thus
not subject to change. Very elaborate patterns were some-
times worked out and the man so ornamented was far more
attractive in the eyes of his fellowmen.
Next to the personal adornment of primitive peoples comes
the decoration of their weapons and implements and the pat-
terns in their handicrafts, such as basketry and mattings. Gen-
erally speaking those are in imitation of nature, and more, imi-
tation of human and animal forms. Heretofore it has not been
unusual to dismiss these as merely geometrical designs. Surely
they were never such in the mind of the ancient worker. He
copied things that he saw around him — copied them awkwardly
no doubt, but nevertheless certainly. Some of these patterns
we can recognize ; others defy us. For example, the waving
line has been interpreted to represent the course of the serpent ;
• The Beginnings of Art, Grosse, p. 61.
PREHISTORIC MAN. XXVH
the herring bone pattern originated as a copy of the feather.
Sometimes the patterns copy the skin markings of some animal
or serpent ; sometimes they imitate the scales of a fish. Very
seldom have these early artists attempted to copy plants or
flowers. Sometimes the bone knife bears an excellent draw-
ing of a bird or fish ; occasionally the whole object has been
given the form of some living creature, as, for example, bone
needle cases have come to us which have the form of fish or
birds. Shields, knives, bows and arrows, and weapons of
whatever sort often bore some picture, more or less decorative.
Such a picture upon an arrow enabled the savage to identify
as his game some animal that died some distance from where
it was wounded. Clubs and throw-sticks remain whereupon
is scratched the picture of some familiar animal — a kangaroo,
a snake, or a fish. But the pictures painted by primeval man
were not limited to those which adorned their weapons and
implements. The hide pictures, or pictures painted or scratched
upon hides are very interesting. Generally the hide used for
this purpose was a portion of the hut. During times when
inclement weather forced the early tribesman to remain inside
for shelter, it may be, merely for diversion he occupied him-
self by scratching some picture upon the soot-covered skin
that formed his hut. A tooth or bit of flint furnished him
with a tool. Or again, a piece of charcoal, snatched from the
hearth, furnished him means of picturing some scene upon a
fresh skin. Figures of men and animals, drawn in outline,
make up the picture. Now a battle, now a hunting scene may
be delineated. The Eskimo brings into his picture some of
the round snow huts, with the animals which he hunts — bears,
walruses, and the like. In detail and accuracy of outline
the tribes still in the hunting stage greatly excel those which
have developed into a settled farming people. Nor is this
difficult to understand. The success of the hunter depends in
no small degree upon his ability to follow the faint foot-prints
of the game. He must be susceptible to many indications
wholly unseen by the casual eye. The keen vision of the
uncivilized hunter is well recognized. When he no longer
needs this wonderful sight to accomplish his daily tasks, it
disappears. For this reason we find a fidelity to nature in
the pictures of the early hunting peoples which is missed in
the productions of more highly developed peoples.
XXVIII THE world's progress.
Finally we may gather these conclusions from the facts
known of primitive art — or of art among primitive peoples.
While no great masterpieces remain as models for future
generations, it is among prehistoric men that art had its be-
ginnings. Nor is it possible to sweep aside the art of this
remote period, relegating it to the realm of the curious alone.
Recent scholarly investigators in this field have reached far
different conclusions, finding here the indications of man's
artistic possibilities and the promise for the future.
"The agreement between the artistic works of the rudest
and of the most cultivated peoples is not only in breadth but
also in depth. Strange and inartistic as the primitive forms
of art sometimes appear at the first sight, as soon as we examine
them more closely, we find that they are formed according to
the same laws as govern the highest creations of art. . . .
The emotions represented in primitive art are narrow and
rude, its materials are scanty, its forms are poor and coarse,
but in its essential motives, means, and aims, the art of the
earliest times is at one with the art of all times.'"
Religion of Prehistoric Men.
It is naturally very difficult to trace the religious belief
of the people of earliest times. Of their art, their dress, their
food, their dwelling places, we may conjecture with some
degree of accuracy because of the evidences they have left
behind. But how shall we gain any worth-while knowledge
of their ideas when they had no means of communicating
them in indelible forms? We must judge of primitive man's
thoughts by what he did. In the earliest times man did not
bury his dead, but by the Smooth Stone Age there is such
advance in this respect that it is probable the Neolithic man
received his first glimmerings from his Paleolithic brother.
He buried his dead with weapons and implements which he
imagined would be as useful in the next world as they had
proven during the earthly life.
It is impossible to state clearly without better evidence
just what his imagination pictured for his dead friend or
relative. The living man was dimly conscious of a Great
Spirit, whose voice and temper were discernible to him in
nature. To this Great Spirit he committed his dead friend.
5 The Beginnings of Art, Grosse, p. 307.
PREHISTORIC MAN. XXIX
It could not be said the living man had anything approaching
a conscious faith in the unseen; he dimly felt a duality of
existence. His friend had entered into this other part. It
is not improbable that dreams helped to awaken in man this
sense of dual existence. That "inner voice" which has forever
prompted man seemed to tell him of another self. This "other
self" very naturally seemed to tell him of an existence outside
himself, and to this "outside spirit" he gave elementary venera-
tion through the forces of nature this spirit appeared to employ.
The early man who had developed a religious sense, wor-
shipped two different kinds of forces; the forces of nature,
and his ancestors. The savage bowed down to the stick that
tripped him in the forest. He could not understand how such
a small object could possess power to throw him and since
it apparently did possess it, he worshipped it. The sun brought
light and warmth. By its presence man was benefited. There-
fore, primeval man worshipped the sun.
Ancestor worship was inspired by quite different motives.
If it were true that the dead lived on, then it must be possible
for them to work one's weal or woe. If the dead were cared
for and ministered unto, they would be appeased and would
have no desire to bring trouble or misfortune upon the sur-
vivor.
The taboo held an important place in early religious be-
liefs and practices. A taboo is a prohibition laid upon some
object or some performance, with the superstitious idea that
injury will follow if the object be used or the performance
done. Some of the tribes of Central Australia, today in the
Smooth Stone stage of development, hold the idea that the
meat of the emu may be eaten only by the elders of the tribe.
For women, therefore, there is a taboo on this meat, and its
use by them would be regarded as a great sacrilege. The
early Hebrews had a similar taboo, recorded in the earliest
set of commandments preserved by them. It was " Thou shalt
not seethe the kid in its mother's milk." This does not mean
one of many foolish meanings worked into it, but rather that
the early Hebrews for some reason had placed this taboo on
kid cooked in milk. The use of beans was similarly tabooed
by Pythagoras and forbidden to his followers. A study of
the taboo is interesting indeed.
XXX THE world's progress.
The totem was important to the primitive man. A totem
is an animal or species of animal from which a social circle
derives its origin. One clan owed its being to a black hawk,
another to an eagle, and so on. No one of a clan would kill
its totem, or in other words, there was a taboo placed upon
the totem. Of course this taboo affected only the one clan.
Early religion consisted for the most part in certain ob-
servances— not so much in formulated beliefs. To be sure,
the primeval man believed that harm would overtake him if
he failed to perform certain ceremonies, but it was the per-
formance or the refraining from the performance that was im-
portant.
Among the earliest people associated into tribes there were
distinct moral requirements. There were some people who were
not to be killed, except upon due provocation, while to kill those
of other tribes brought great glory. Again, it was not right
to lie to those of one's own tribe, but to others one might
lie at all times. " An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth,"
was the primitive way of viewing injury, and yet when history
sheds its light upon certain nations of antiquity, some of them
had already come into the transition state, where damages
might be given if satisfactory to the injured. The Babylon-
ians afford an excellent example of this condition.
CoNCIvUSION.
Each individual passes through many of the stages through
which the race has come. A child may pass in a week or a
month through a stage covering centuries in the development of
the race, but nevertheless he experiences it clearly for the time
being. The savage personified everything around him. If he
struck himself against a tree, he was angry with the tree that
had hurt him, and he tried to hurt the tree in revenge. The
child today falls against a chair and hits the chair that hurt
him. Now just as the child by such experiences, scarcely noted
by others, realized far less by himself, comes into the clear
vision of manhood, so by similar experiences the whole race has
come to its present development. We are too prone to smile at
the conceptions of the primitive world, and, grown wise with
the flight of centuries, cast aside the bdiefs of early ages
when men adjusted themselves to life. Let us reflect then
PRKHISTORIC MAN.
XXXI
upon the attainments of prehistoric man and attempt to fathom
how great a debt historic peoples owe him. In view of his
achievements, we must grant that by his efforts civihzation
was greatly aided. The stepping stones on which he rose
from abject savagery to higher things stand out sharply in
spite of absence of records and scant remains. The rough
pioneering had been done, in a great measure, and not alone
the rudiments of civilization but evidences of culture were
plainly visible at the dawn of history, properly so-called.
ABORIGINAL ROCK-CARVINGS.
i
EGYPTIAN AFTERGLOW.
** 'Tis sunset Kour on Egypt's arid plains.
Each mighty pyramid, with purpling crest.
Looms dark against the glory in the wesL
Swiftly the heaven's beauty dies and wsuies.
Till sudden dsu'kness its rich splendor stains.
Then slowly, dawn^like, on the shadows rest
Fsdnt crimsons, violets, tint to tint soft pressed;
They brighten, glow, then fade and darkness reigns-
P. F. Gamp.
12
EGYPT
PREFATORY CHAPTER
HERE never was a time when men were so in-
tensely interested in origins and development as
they are today. Our biologists are studying life
in all its forms, from the single cell to the highest
mammal. Our psychologists are studying mind — what
consciousness is; how attention, habit, memory are
formed. Our physicists, not content with studying gravitation,
heat, light, electricity, etc., are inquiring into the very nature
of matter itself, and, together with the astronomers and geol-
ogists, are telling us not only how the earth, but also how the
universe came to be. Our anthropologists, ethnologists and
sociologists are just as actively and patiently inquiring into
the origins of customs, institutions, law, religion, society. The
historian is no longer content to rehearse a story because it is
interesting; he insists upon getting at the original documents,
at the facts in the case, not at theories. The savage, when
asked why he observes a certain custom or performs some cere-
mony whose meaning he does not know, replies that his an-
cestors did the same. To inquire beyond this seems to him
more than useless. Until the beginning of our modern scientific
age the answer to similar questions among ourselves — as it still
is among the Chinese, would have been, "it is written," "thus
saith the Lord," "Aristotle, Plato or St. Augustine thought so
and so about the matter." But today all is difTerent. We are no
longer content to knoAV what is written, or what somebody thinks
about a subject, we insist upon demonstrating or having some
one demonstrate for us, the proposition put forward. We want
the "facts." Our whole system of education encourages pupils
to perform experiments and thus verify the statements they may
find in their text-books on chemistry, physics and other sut>jects.
14 THE WORIJ)'S PROGRESS.
It is the inductive method which gives the pupil the facts and
encourages him to draw his own conclusions.
But what has Egypt to offer the modem man ? Does it inter-
est any but specialists and archaeologists ? Apparently it does,
for every year sees an increase of tourists in the Nile valley.
It is true many go there because of the ideal climate or because
it has become the fashion to do so. But if we look at the mat-
ter more closely, do we not see other, deeper reasons? Is it
not true that many go because in their youth they had read
about the pyramids and the wonderful temples of Egypt, and
because now when they have the opportunity they desire to
see these for themselves? The architect, the engineer, the con-
tractor, all are interested in these masses of masonry. Again,
when we are beginning to reclaim the desert areas in our west-
em states, Egypt with its system of irrigation, older than his-
tory, arouses a new interest. The fact is that in spite of our
practical nature, as some would put it, or rather, as we prefer
to have it, because of our intensely practical nature, we are
beginning to feel the necessity of inquiring into the activities
of other peoples, be they past or present, not only because such
inquiry will satisfy our curiosity or enliven VDur dull moments,
but because of the lasting benefit we derive from it. We insist
upon knowing the people who have achieved, who have accom-
plished things, and surely the pyramids alone would demon-
strate that the ancient Egyptians belonged to this class.
Man attained to civilisation for the first time in the Nile
valley. We study the natives of Australia and Africa for social
origins. It is here we can gather most information about the
primitive forms of marriage and the growth of the family ; about
the beginnings of dress and ornament ; about primitive warfare,
magic, religion and early forms of tribal government. Just
as we pay special attention to the development of the mind of
the child in the study of psychology, so we feel that the best
way to study the complex features of our civilization is to
observe the simpler life of the savage. But the child becomes a
man while the savage has not yet developed a civilization before
our eyes. The growth of the race is slow. It is only when we
are able to observe a race through a period of thousands of years
that it is possible to see it grow from infancy to manhood. We
can follow our own ancestors from the time they had advanced
EGYPT. 15
little beyond the stage of savagery, but it is to be observed that
they did not develop but borrowed their civilization. Of the
beginnings of the Greeks and Romans, whose civilization our
ancestors took over, we know but little, but in the case of the
Egyptians matters are different. We are able, by means of
archaeological, monumental and inscriptional remains to follow
them as they developed in the Nile valley, unassisted by any
outside civilization — for none existed, the world's first great
civilized state.
"It may appear paradoxical to affirm that it is in arid districts,
where agriculture is most arduous, that agriculture began ; yet
the affirmation is not to be gainsaid but rather supported by
history, and is established beyond reasonable doubt by the evi-
dence of desert organisms and organizations."^ This lesson
drawn from the life of the Papago Indians might just as well
have been drawn from Egyptian life. Egypt is practically
rainless, but the soil of the Nile valley, ever renewed by the silt
deposited by the yearly inundation, yields enormous returns
provided only man uses his energy and ingenuity. Long be-
fore our written records begin the Egyptians had developed
an extensive system of irrigation. Thus by arduous toil, organ-
ized and watched over by the growing state, Egypt developed
an enormous agricultural wealth — the foundation upon which
her civilization was built. With Egypt it was not a question of
the "conservation" but of the development of her natural re-
sources. The Egyptian was forced to keep up a continuous
struggle with nature and as a result he was always practical.
Egypt has been called the mother of the mechanical arts. It
is not surprising that the imaginative Greeks, when they became
acquainted with the material civilization of Egypt, her pyra-
mids and temples, her system of irrigation, her craftsmanship,
conceived an exaggerated opinion of the wisdom of the Egyp-
tians. Even today we hear surmises of "lost arts" which were
used in the construction of the pyramids. But we know better.
The pyramids were built by the brawn of tens of thousands of
serfs, without the use, it would seem, of even a pulley ; not even
the roller seems to have been known. On the other hand, we
have only to visit the museums here and abroad — especially
* W. J. McGee, "The Beginning of Agriculture," American Anthropo-
logist, 8, 375.
i6 THE world's progress.
the one in Cairo, to realize the marvellous skill the Egyptian
workman acquired in the carving of wood, ivory and stone, and
in the working of metals. Our architects are studying the prod-
ucts of the greatest geniuses Egyptian culture produced, and
our students of design may learn many a lesson from the work-
manship of her artisans.
Not long since it was not unusual to see ridicule heaped
upon the theories of the "high-brows" by our farmers, manu-
facturers and other "practical" men. Probably our system of
education was at fault. Nevertheless, these same farmers,
manufacturers and other practical men are beginning to realize
the importance of the researches and investigations of the
specialists. We cannot hope to compete with the industries
of the Germans which rest upon a scientific basis, as long as
ours are conducted by "rule-of-thumb" methods. There is no
better opportunity offered anywhere for observing the limita-
tions of an exclusively practical system of education than the
study of Egyptian learning.
The Egyptian regarded learning as a means to an end, and
that end was never the increase of the sum of human knowledge
or the advancement of humankind, but always freedom from
manual labor. Next to a few folk songs, preserved in the decora-
tions of Fifth Dynasty tombs — ^by mere accident, for a scribe
would never have thought of preserving them, the oldest litera-
ture of the Egyptians which has come down to us consists of the
precepts of Kagemni and Ptah-hotep.^ This wisdom of the
viziers of the Pharaohs of the Fourth and Fifth Dynasties, is
similar to that of the books of instruction from all periods of
Egyptian history, and consists largely of rules of conduct. The
sole object of an education was to obtain a position as scribe
or secretary of higher or lower rank in the government service,
and this could only be done by gaining and keeping the favor
of the Pharaoh or of one of his officials. These scribes never
weary of telling of the superiority of their calling over that of
the man who must labor with his hands, who is like a heavily
laden ass driven by the scribes. Of course we too recognize
the g^lf fixed between the educated and the unlettered, but we
try to bridge it. It is not probable that many of the laboring
classes knew more than the barest elements of reading and
'See page 164.
EGYPT. 17
writing". The Egyptian script was exceedingly cumbrous, and
probably few would have seen any use in mastering it, even if
they had had the time, unless they intended to enter upon a scribal
career. Of course many such careers were open, for the elaborate
bureaucratic system of administration demanded the services
of a host of secretaries and overseers. In time these constituted
a distinct middle class, largely recruited, we may be sure, from
the laboring class below. The Egyptian was always ready to
recognize and reward ability, no matter where it was found.
Now a Vv'ord about the limitations of such a view of education.
As already indicated, the object of an education was to gain
a government position. In Egypt, as elsewhere, the chief end
of government, in the eyes of the officials at least, was the col-
lection of revenues. Taxes were in kind and as a result the
work of the scribe consisted in finding out the amount of the
harvest and deducting the king's share. The extensive mining
and building operations conducted by the Pharaohs required
the services of hundreds of scribes and overseers to superin-
tend the work and distribute the rations of the armies of work-
men employed in these projects. In this work the scribe
developed a remarkable facility with figures. But he never
advanced beyond concrete examples. Multiplication and divi-
sion in our sense of th". terms were unknown to him, their places
were taken by addition and subtraction. For example : to multi-
ply seven by nine, the Egyptian scribe would proceed, i • 7 7,
2.7=14, 2 . 14 = 28, 2 . 28 = 56, etc. That is he always
doubled the last figure. It was nothing but addition. He
wrote his results as follows:
I
7
2
14
4
• 28
8
56
16
112
and then found which of the numbers of the first column added
together would give the sum 9. These were 8 and i. He
then added the corresponding numbers in the second column
and got the result, 56 + 7 = 63. So 50-^-7 would have
looked like this: 50 — 28 = 22; 22 — 14 = 8; 8 — 7=i.
The result was (4 4-2-}- i) sevens with i as remainder. The
1 8 THE world's progress.
Egyptian scribe could not handle fractions other than those with
one as numerator. Two-thirds was the only exception. The
Egyptian knew that the area of a rectangle was to be found by
multiplying the two adjacent sides together, and that the area
of a right angled triangle was equal to half the area of a rect-
angle whose base and altitude were equal respectively to the
sides adjacent to the right angle. When his problem was to
find the area of an isosceles triangle he applied the same
rule, that is, multiplied the base by one of the sides and divided
by two. Here theory might have helped him, had he been able
to develop it. He never reached the conception of base and
altitude. His rule for finding the area of a circle is worth men-
tioning. He took the diameter, subtracted one-ninth of it
therefrom, and squared the result. In a word, he had not come
far from the correct value of '^. But the Egyptian always dealt
with concrete examples, he never was able to generalize and
carry his mathematics into the theoretical. As a result he
never attained scientific accuracy. Not that he did not set
himself difficult problems. Indeed many of them are so compli-
cated that they required an immense amount of reckoning, by
his methods, to solve. Without giving his solution, let me add
one more of his problems : "A man owns 7 cats ; each cat eats
7 mice daily ; each mouse eats 7 ears of grain ; each ear contains
7 grains; each grain gives a sevenfold return in the harvest.
What is the sum of the cats, mice, ears and grains ?"
The Egyptians observed the stars. They had names for all
of the principal constellations; knew the circumpolar stars
from those which at times disappeared below the horizon, but
they never seem to have noticed the difference between fixed
stars and planets. They invented a calendar with a year of 365
days as early as 4241 B.C. This was based upon the heliacal
rising of Sirius (Sothis) coincident with the beginning of the
inundation. But they never discovered, or if they did, never
bothered about the fact that their year was one- fourth of a day
too short. They were deeply interested in medicine, and their
recipes prescribe everything that can be swallowed. Many of
these were borrowed by the Greeks and from them have come
down into the folk-medicine of modern Europe. No doubt
many of their remedies were helpful, but magic always played
the most important role in their medicine, as it does among aU
EGYPT. 19
primitive peoples and as it did in our own until the beginning
of our modern scientific age.
The progress made by the Egyptians in the development of
a purer conception of religion will be discussed at length in
the body of this volume, especially on pages 131 and following.
The Egyptians were not far from monotheism.
But the Egyptian culture must be studied as a whole. Time
was when the study of the civilization of Egypt, Babylonia and
Assyria, together with that of the Hebrews, was regarded as a
sort of introduction to the study of history, which began with
the Greeks and Romans. Much was said of the immovable
East. It was supposed that progress was exceedingly slow
there as compared with that in the West. But our wider
knowledge of the history and life of these peoples shows how
false this conception was. We can trace Egyptian civilization
from its beginnings in the palaeolithic and neolithic ages ; see it
develop from many petty states into an absolute monarchy;
follow it as it emerges after a period of anarchy into a Feudal
Age, and as it rises after two centuries of foreign oppression
into a mighty empire pushing its southern frontier away into
Nubia and its northern one to the Euphrates. Meanwhile
we are not neglecting to study the economic and intellectual
forces at work. Society has been developing steadily. A
monotheistic religion has been growing up. But Egypt has
reached her zenith and the age of decline sets in. In time she
falls before foreign invasion, because chc has used up her vital-"
ity. Her civilization is not to be studied as a preliminary to
anything else, but as the achievement of a gifted race. Of
course we are to compare her progress with that of other peo-
ples, to see the faults of, but also to appreciate the good in, her
culture.
THE SPIRAL DECORATION OF SCARABS.
EGYPT.
CHAPTER I.
Its Antiquity.
MONG Old Testament stories familiar through-
out the Christian World, a general favorite with
boys and girls from their earliest years is the
story ot Joseph — a seventeen year old lad, the
son of his father's later life, and most loved of all his
children. In Genesis we may read how his brothers be-
came jealous of Joseph because of Jacob's care for him, and
their anger increased when the boy related a dream wherein he
had seen himself exalted to high position while his family and
all the world did honor to him.
His people led a pastoral life, and when the dry season
came, the older brothers went away with the flocks in search
of fresh pastures. Soon the father' grew anxious to hear
from them, and sent Joseph to locate them and then return
to tell him how they fared. After some searching, Joseph
drew near the flocks and was seen afar by his brothers. They
were now many miles from home, and what they might da
was not likely to reach the ears of those who knew them.
So they plotted to kill Joseph and ascribe the deed to some
wild beast. Reuben, more compassionate, urged that they
should not have this awful crime upon their hands, but sug-
gested instead that they cast him into a pit, from which plight,
we are told, Reuben intended to deliver him. The others
yielded to his plea, and Joseph was cast into the pit. Shortly
after, a caravan' came in sight, passing on its way to Egypt.
At once a surer way of disposing of Joseph suggested itself —
they would sell him as a slave and free themselves from
further responsibility in the matter. The company of mer-
chantmen drew nearer, journeying with thgir spices and their
The story of egvpt. 21
wares. To them Joseph was sold, and with them he " went
down into Egypt."
His varying fortune for the next few years is briefly told.
Now we see him a trusted servant, given responsibility and
acquitting himself with credit ; then upon false accusation, he
is cast into prison, but even here he wins the confidence of his
jailer. Here too, he establishes a fame for the interpretation
of dreams, which ability is soon noised abroad. So widely
did it become known that when the king's counsellors were
unable to explain his repeated vision, from prison walls Joseph
was summoned to reveal its hidden meaning. He thereupon
foretold the seven years of plenty and the seven years of
famine through which the land of Egypt would soon pass.
The king, impressed with his wisdom and sincerity, chose
him steward of the realm.
All know the outcome of the tale — how Joseph soon be-
came second in importance to the king himself, trusted, de-
pended upon and loved ; how he bought up the heavy yield
of grain throughout the realm for seven years and hoarded
it in " store cities," until he ceased to chronicle the amount,
so vast it was. Then when the years of famine came, he
sold again to those who would buy, and when their money
was exhausted, he took their flocks, their lands and their
slaves as security — yes, even the service of citizens was pledged
to the king in exchange for food.
It was during these tedious years of want that Joseph
learned of his family, when the same brothers who had done
him so much injury came into Egypt to buy grain, and through
his generosity they were united once more, and at his invitation
brought their families to dwell near him. The king commanded
that they be well provided for and they prospered and in-
creased in number.
Years passed and Jacob died, and at last Joseph himself.
Then we are told there came to the throne a king " who knew
not Joseph. " He looked with dismay upon a foreign people
growing up within his country, whose traditions, customs,
and religious beliefs were wholly unlike those of his own
nation. Then followed the years of oppression when he sought
to exterminate the race with relentless work and cruel perse-
cution. Within recent years, one of the "store cities," supposed
23 ThS world's progress.
by some scholars to have been built by the Hebrews during this
period of their life in Egypt, has been unearthed — verifying
the account of their bondage as preserved to us in the book of
Genesis.
It is difficult for us to realize the vast antiquity of Egypt.
When Joseph as a seventeen year old boy came with that
band of merchantmen into its borders more years had passed
over its civilization than have passed since Homer told his
stories of gods and heroes to the Hellenes who gathered around
to hear him. The three great pyramids had stood in their
majestic calm under more moons than have risen and set since
Christ was born in Bethlehem of Judea ; and the Sphinx had
watched, for how many years men cannot tell. When we
come to the land of Egypt, we are appalled by its age. America
was discovered about five hundred years ago ; England has
been inhabited for more than twenty hundred years, but Egypt
counts its history back for thousands of years and loses itself
in tradition and legendary periods preceding these. The story
of Joseph, told in Genesis, the book of earliest Biblical tradi-
tion, records an incident early in the history of the Hebrews,
but the Egyptians had already been governed by many ruling
dynasties and had known the oppression of invading kings
whom they had at last driven from the throne. They had built
colossal structures which were to perpetuate the memories of
their mighty kings as well as to provide their everlasting tombs,
and these stand today the marvel of all who gaze upon their
vast proportions. They had developed a complex religious
system, and had reached some perfection in decorative art.
Egypt had long been the granary of the civilized world and
consequently of great importance from an economic stand-
point. The Nile, that wonderful river which caused Herodotus
to exclaim : " Egypt is the gift of the Nile ! " — a sentiment
quoted ever since by all who have written about the country
or the river — had cut down its river bed and had already
built up a rich soil in the valley by its deposits, left by the over-
flow of countless seasons.
We look today upon the cathedrals of Europe, standing
as they have since the Norman conquest, even, in some in-
stances antedating it, and we exclaim that the builders of these
impressive edifices built for ages to come. Yet in Egypt
the pyramids have stood for almost five thousand years.
THS STORY Ot KGYPT. 23
and it is safe to say that they will proclaim to many millenniums
more, the wealth and power of the Pharaohs who raised them
for their everlasting- abodes. Hundreds of years dwindle in
the contemplation of thousands, and these are ever before the
student of Egyptian history.
Physical Gkography of Egypt.
Egypt is located in the northeastern corner of Africa. To
the east lies the Isthmus of Suez — the pathway to Asia, and
the Red Sea — separated by a range of mountains from the Val-
ley of the Nile. To the south lies Nubia, and to the west
stretches away for hundreds of weary miles the Sahara, the old
bed of an extinct ocean.
Egypt is by no means the country it is sometimes repre-
sented to be on geographical maps. That Egypt someone
has called a " geographical fiction." On the contrary, it has
always consisted simply of the Nile valley and delta. It is
about one-half as large again as the state of Massachusetts,
containing approximately 12,000 square miles.
The Nile is unlike any river of our land. It takes its
rise in a chain of lakes near the Equator. These lakes lie in
a heavy rain belt and at a certain season the rainfall is so
constant that the river is greatly swollen. It is joined by
tributaries which in turn are overflowing with the melting
snows of mountains wherein they take their rise, and alto-
gether the main river continues so to increase that it overflows
its channel and spreads out into the valley on either side.
In America we know how disastrous spring floods fre-
quently become, but here the overflow is violent, tearing down
bridges and embankments, bringing injury rather than benefit
to the land. In Egypt the rise of the Nile is gradual ; dwellings
are built on elevations of land or on the outskirts of the valley.
Without the yearly inundation there would be no food to
maintain the dense population of the country.
During the period of high water the Nile is heavily loaded
with mud. When the river recedes, this fertile silt is left
upon the surface of the land. This, and this alone, has made
the land of Egypt different from the deserts on either side
of it. And now we see how truly Herodotus spoke when he
exclaimed that Egypt is the gift of the Nile. Containing
24 THE WORI^D'S PROGRESS.
about the same number of miles as our state of Maryland,
for numberless years this little country has been the granary
for surrounding lands. Thus may we judge of its remarkable
fertility.
Much of the loam which the river has brought down has
been spread over the valley, but a considerable amount has
been emptied each year at the mouth of the stream, forming
in course of time a delta, — so called by the Greeks from its
resemblance to their letter delta. Because of its long threading
valley and this delta, Egypt has sometimes been likened to
a lily ; the delta representing the flower and the valley the
stem.
After flowing four thousand miles, the waters of the Nile
find their way at last to the Mediterranean Sea, and towards
this sea the land gradually slopes. Passing southward through
Egypt from the Mediterranean, one journeys more than a
hundred miles through the delta. This great plain has been
formed entirely of the mud washed down by the mighty river.
Each year for countless ages it has been extended at least
eight feet farther into the sea, and thus its area continues to
increase. This portion of the country, or this delta, is frequent-
ly referred to as Lower Egypt.
Continuing south, one enters the valley. This narrow
strip of fertile land measures about six hundred miles from
the apex, or southern extremity of the delta, to the first cata-
ract. The bed of the Nile is very irregular in its upper course
and falls over ten cataracts in its downward flow before the
southern boundary of Upper Egypt is reached. In width the
valley varies from one to ten miles. This portion of the country
is known as Upper Egypt.
Imagine, if you can, a river flowing through a valley
skirted on either side by deserts whose boundaries are so
abruptly marked that one may stand with one foot in the
fertile, life-producing valley, and with the other in the shift-
ing sands of desert waste. On the east lies the Arabian
desert, while the many colored peaks of a lofty mountain
range form a well nigh impassable barrier between it and the
Red Sea, save where famous mountain passes lead to the
waters beyond.
Nubian mountains, to the south, supplied most of the gold
THE STOKY OF EGYPT 2$
and precious ore used by the ancient Egyptians, and were
held in greatest dread by those taken in captivity, for the
work within them was relentless and none ever returned when
once sent to join the hopeless, heartsick throng of laborers
employed by the king to develop the mines.
The Sahara west of the valley is not a flat region, but is
made up of shifting sands, hills and rocks of limestone. It is
plain that the Valley of the Nile was once a part of this
desert, but the river, with its tremendous volume, set to work
to cut down its bed. The channel, so worn down, is the present
valley. " Egypt is the temporarily uncovered bed of the Nile,
which it reclaims and recovers during a portion of each year,
when Egypt disappears from view, save where human labor
has by mounds and embankments formed artificial islands that
raise their heads above the waste of waters, for the most
part crowned with buildings. "»
It is plain, as we note the nature of the land through which
the great river flows, that no rich soil would be accumulated
from the banks it washes in its downward course. We must
look to the high tablelands where the two large tributaries,
the Eiue Nile and the Atbara, have their beginnings, to find
the m.ountain loam that has given the valley a fertile soil,
thirty feet in depth, and has built up the grain-producing delta,
one hundred miles in length and more in breadth. Again
and again we are forced to remember that Egypt is indeed
the gift of the Nile.
Yearly Rise ot the Nile.
This brings us back once more to the subject of the inunda-
tions. Early in June the Nile begins to rise below the first
cataract. In July it has become swollen throughout its course.
The highest water mark is reached about September
fifteenth. By the first of November the river begins
to recede and is at low water again by the last of January,
although it continues to diminish until the following June.
Nilometers are used to register the river's rise. These are
wells in which the water can fluctuate freely, with a stone
column in the center marked as a scale. The ell is the unit
^Rawllnson; Ancient Egypt, p. 6,
26 THE world's progress.
of measure, being equal to about twenty-one and one-third
inches. At low water the river registers about seven ells. If
during the inundation sixteen ells are reached, all Egypt is
supplied with water and fine crops are assured throughout
the land.
NlI/)METERS.
From earliest times the rise of the Nile was closely watched,
and nilometers, which were under the special protection of the
State, constructed. Today these water gauges are under the
inspection of government officials. Taxes have always been
apportioned according to the amount of the inundation, and it
has been to the interest of the government, naturally, that these
be as heavy as possible. For this reason it has often been
claimed, both in ancient and modern times, that the official report
of the high water mark greatly exceeded the actual rise.
There is no rainfall in the valley and little in the delta,
so whatever moisture Egypt receives must come from the
Nile. The entire valley is not of equal elevation but becomes
higher as it spreads out on either side, and so a vast system
of irrigation must be maintained to make good crops possible.
Large sums have been expended in the construction of dams,
embankments and canals to contain the water after the river
recedes, allowing the amount thus retained to be drawn off
as it is needed. From canals it is drawn off into trenches
for still higher land, and artificial means of various kinds have
alw^ays been employed to lift the water from one level to
another. It is estimated that tens of thousands of men and
boys are constantly engaged in this elevation of water from
one level to another, in order that farms throughout the valley
may receive the necessary moisture and fertility. As rapidly
as one crop is harvested, the soil is made ready for another,
so that as many as five crops are frequently harvested in a
year on a given acreage.
InFIvUENCE OE ToPOGRAPnY.
With a sea on the north, mountains on the east, cataracts
to the south and a desert on the west, what would be the
natural effect upon the inhabitants of physical conditions such
as these prevailing in the land of Egypt? They determined
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 27
that the Egyptians would be left to develop their civilization
unmolested for the most part by outside influences. Such
physical features account for the fact that for hundreds of
years that was a land, not of war, but of peace. Think for
a moment what natural boundaries have meant to nations of
Europe. England's isolation has been largely due to her
stormy channel, while the independence of the Swiss is ac-
counted for by their inaccessible mountain home. Austria, on
the other hand, has known the disastrous effects of repeated
invasions, while Poland has lost her identity and has been
appropriated by her neighbors because of unfortunate situation
and the lack of natural defenses.
Not only did the topography of the land surface determine
the political fortunes of the ancient Egyptians in a large de-
gree; it materially influenced the very temperament of the
people. Many civilizations have developed in lands broken
by hills and valleys, plains and plateaus, dotted with lakes,
skirted by forests, bays, inlets and a thousand irregularities
of nature. Few trees grow in Egypt and few wild flowers
are found. Each spot that might have become a tangled
thicket was early appropriated by the practical tiller of the
soil. The valley has always supported too dense a popula-
tion to permit of wilds and abandoned corners, and only that
remains uncultivated which has proved too marshy for grain
production. Possessing no timber suitable for ship-building,
the Nile dwellers did not become sailors. Their communica-
tion from one part of the country to the other was established
by means of small boats or donkey paths. Rain was scanty
and mud huts sufficed to slielter the people. While constant
attention was required to maintain an extensive system of
irrigation, the soil was so fertile and the climate so favorable
that two, three and even more crops per year were possible.
Nature worked with — not against — man. "A serene temper,
and a reliance in nature were fostered. A submissiveness
was developed which allowed the king to turn all
into a fighting people, or into a body of forced la-
borers." The absence of nearly all that inspires, that stimu-
lates the energy and quickens the imagination may largely
account for the placid temperament of the ancient Egyptians.
Passing their lives in a land of slightly varying processes,
■jS The world's progress.
they could imagine nothing more satisfactory for a hereafter
than a shadowy land wherein the% might till the soil as of yore,
only watei- should always reach the needs of the remotest,
and perplexities removed, each should complete his yearly
circuit through eternity.
PrKhistoric Egypt.
Long before northern Africa acquired its present land sur-
face, made up so largely of deserts, it is believed that the
portion which we call Egypt was a fertile country, visited
by frequent rains. It is possible that the Nile did not exist ;
at least, it had not eroded its present channel, and the fertility
of the soil was due to causes other than yearly inundations.
This, we must remember, was many geological ages ago and
cannot be computed in years at all. Remains of rude flint
implements are scattered over the heights of the desert plateau
to the west of the Nile valley. The people who used these lived
in settlements, traces of many of which have been found ; but
of their relation to the later inhabitants of Egypt we know
nothing. They belong to the field of archaeology rather than
to history.
Climatic changes took place in Africa. Gradually the coun-
try assumed its present surface of desert and valley. It is sup-
posed that Libyan tribes came from northwestern Africa and
settled in Egypt; these were joined later by Asiatic hordes
who crossed the Isthmus of Suez in search of better pastures
for their flocks, or because of some shifting of the tribes in their
rear. This inference, based upon the Semitic elements in the
grammar and vocabulary of the language of the earliest Egyp-
tian inscriptions, has been raised almost beyond doubt by the
latest researches. From the mingling of these Asiatic tribes
with others already established in western Africa, sprang, so
it is believed, the early Egyptians. The Egyptians, however,
like the ancient Greeks, regarded themselves as autochthonous.
Roughly speaking, prehistoric events in Egypt include all
those preceding the year 4000 B.C., and our knowledge of
them has been gathered from the disclosures of excavated tombs.
While a discussion of the Egyptian religion will be taken up
later on, some slight knowledge of it is necessary at the start
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 29
The Egyptian of both early and later periods believed firmly
in a future life, but he believed further that the future wel-
fare of the soul dependea wholly upon the preservation of
the body. This belief led him to study how best to preserve
the dead body, and to bring embalming to such an art that
tombs opened today, after the flight of five thousand years,
reveal bodies in complete states of preservation. Again, it
was believed that the same needs would be felt in the future
life as had been experienced during the earthly career. For
this reason, foods, vessels of pottery, weapons, and even toilet
preparations for personal adornment, were enclosed in the
tomb. From a study of the contents of these ancient tombs
most that is at present known of the ancient Egyptian has
been ascertained.
When many implements furnished with ivory handles are
found in these tombs, together with occasional pictures of ele-
phants scratched on bone and bits of pottery, even those of us
who are neither antiquarians nor historians might infer that
the elephant was contemporaneous with the prehistoric Egy^p-
tian. Pictures of boats, of animals and men, decorating pieces
of pottery, throw light upon this early civilization.
From all remains recovered m tombs antedating the year
4000 B. c. the following conclusions have been reached : these
primitive people reached considerable skill in the making of
pottery and stone receptacl-^s. From copper they made knives
and implements ; they built very fair river boats, wove coarse
fabrics, although skins of wild animals usually constituted
their clothing : they hunted and fished and were to some extent
an agricultural people. At this remote time Egypt was not the
one united country it later became. It was composed of nomes,
or districts, of which the late lists give 22 for Upper and 20 for
Lower Egypt. Their number probably varied considerably dur-
ing the course of Egyptian history. In early times each nome
probably had been the home of an independent tribe, having
its own chief and its own religious customs. Gradually, how-
ever, powerful chieftains conquered other nomes, until just
before our written records begin, the two more or less compact
kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt were established.
30
THE world's progress.
Throughout Egyptian history each locahty held to its peculiar
religious beliefs, and although there was always a state religion
and a state god, dearer to the hearts of men were the deities of
their own vicinity; and it is possible to trace several religions
in the one composite system of later years.
By 4300 B. c. the men of the Delta had divided the year
into 365 days, and again into twelve months of thirty days
each, with five extra days for sacred festival. For six thousand
years, then, the calendar which we use has experienced little
change. Take it all in all, the Egyptians of this age had trav-
eled far from the state of savagery.
'A A
UPPER EGYPT.
LOWER EGYPT, UPPER AND LOWER EGYPT.
ROYAL CROWNS.
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 3I
CLEOPATRA.
CHAPTER II.
Sources of Egyptian History.
The study of prehistoric man is largely a matter of con-
jecture and has httle interest for any save the archaeologist and
antiquarian. There is yet so much uncertainty regarding his-
toric periods in Egypt that the general reader must leave pre-
historic ages to others. Reaching authentic ages, in addition
to the remains discovered within old tombs, we are aided by
written records, and these fall into three classes : facts regard-
ing Eg}'pt as recounted in the Old Testament ; v;ritings of the
Greeks ; inscriptions of the ancient Eg}'ptians themselves. The
light thrown upon the subject by old Hebrew writers is slight.
They chronicled the history of their own people and mentioned
other nations only when in some way the Hebrews came into
contact with them. Hebrew traditions, customs, and religion
differing wholly from those of Egypt, at best there would have
been but little understanding between them. Biblical comment
upon Egyptian life is slight. In connection with the story of
Joseph we find that some facts concerning the land unwittingly
creep into the narrative. !Modern discovery has verified such
facts as are recounted, and buried and forgotten cities have
been sought and located from mere mention of them in some
Old Testament passage. Thus the Bible is rightly included
with tlie sources of Egyptian history.
So far as treatment of Egy'pt by Greek writers is concerned,
we can stop for only the most important. Best known are the
works of Herodotus, who lived about five hundred years before
the Christian era. He was the first to bring forward the his-
torical style of writing and for this reason he has been called
the Father of History.
Herodotus journeyed to Egypt and abode there some Httle
time. He did not understand the language of the country and
depended largely upon priests who spoke Greek for his in-
formation. He apparently believed all they told him, and like-
$7 THE WORID'S progress.
wise accepted the tales with which his guides entertained him,
incorporating all their marvelous stories into his writings.
Consequently much that is found in his works cannot be cred-
ited. Whatever he himself saw and understood he recounted
with simplicity and truth, as recent discoveries have proved.
It is easy today to point out the failings of Herodotus and to
wonder that he was so ready to credit all he heard, but judged
by the age in which he lived, his writings may be the better
understood. We are told that portions of his works were read
by him at the Olympian Games, and that those who listened
received his stories with enthusiasm. To the imaginative
Greeks no report was too fanciful to find credence. They de-
lighted in the unusual and strange, and they made up the
audiences for which Herodotus wrote. It is not surprising,
then, that the Father of History brought back to his country-
men the unique stories he heard concerning the Egyptians — a
people whose life and customs were thought by foreigners until
long years after, to be deeply shrouded in mystery.
More valuable has proved the work of Manetho, an Egyp-
tian priest who wrote in Greek. He is said to have made a
complete list of Egyptian kings from records preserved in the
temples. This list has been lost and only portions quoted from
time to time by later writers have come down to us. These
fragments have been of much service to students of F*gyptology.
It was Manetho who divided the history of his country into
three periods : the Old Empire, Middle Empire, and New
Empire. He also treated the past by dynasties rather than
years. These general divisions have been retained by all subse-
quent historians. Those who are not specialists in Egyptology
are apt to be confused by the widely divergent systems of
chronology found in the different histories of Egypt, or they
reach the conclusion that all is uncertainty in this field. This
is not the place to enter into a discussion of this difficult technical
problem. Suffice it to say that in the opinion of the best scholars,
Eduard Meyer, the great historian of the Ancient Orient, has
said the last word on this subject. Contrary opinions notwith-
standing, the accession of Menes and the beginning of the
dynasties cannot be placed before 3400 B.C., nor can the begin-
ning of the twelfth dynasty have been earlier than 2000 B.C.*
Coming lastly to monumental inscriptions, we approach the
THE STORY OF FXVPT. 33
difficulties of the Egyptian language. Let us try to understand
why it proved so difficult for scholars who read Hebrew, Greek
and Latin, together with some older tongues, to comprehend the
language of the Nile dwellers.
In prehistoric times the Egyptians understood one another
but it was long before they had any means of expressing their
thoughts in writing. It may have occurred to them finally that
the pictures which they drew for decorative purposes might be
used to convey messages, and thus they began to express simple
meanings, using pictures rather than symbols. Sometimes to
make doubly sure the meaning of several pictures, they added
another which combined the meaning of all into one. These
added pictures have been called determinitives, and the pictures
used to convey meanings in this way are known as hiero-
glyphics. There was something very attractive and decorative
about this method of writing by thus picturing out stories, and
it was used extensively in tombs and temples. It became too
elaborate, however, for daily use, and gradually only the main
outlines of the original pictures were used to represent the idea
or word. This system of writing was more practical for con-
stant, everyday needs than the more ornamental hieroglyphics.
It is known as the hieratic writing. Finally, late in the history
of Eg>'pt, these hieratics were veiy much abbreviated, mere dots
and lines being substituted. This cursory system is known as
demotic writing. It was adopted by the people generally,
and might perhaps be compared to modern shorthand. To
make the whole more complicated still, all three methods were
used for different purposes contemporaneously.
Hundreds of years passed ; the language of the ancient
Egyptians was forgotten and so, indeed, were the people them-
selves. In modern times the learning of ancient peoples was
revived and their writings eagerly read. Quite naturally stu-
dents wished to know something of the earliest civilizations,
particularly of the civilization of the Nile valley. Here they
were confronted by what seemed baffling indeed. Three forms
of writing used contemporaneously, even interchangeablv, de-
fied all effort to decipher them. Attempts were made to explain
certain inscriptions, but these explanations w ere found later to
have been far astray. In 1799, one of Napoleon's soldiers, while
excavating in the mouth of the Rosetta, came upon a stone
34 THB world's progress.
which bore a royal decree written in three ways : in hiero-
glyphics, in demotic and in Greek, This supplied a key at last,
and scholars set themselves to the task of deciphering ancient
Egyptian writings. Other inscriptions written in two or more
languages were found and verified the conclusions reached
earlier in the translation of the Rosetta Stone.
In recent years a large number of inscriptions from tombs
and temples have been read and many rolls of papyrus have
been translated. This has enabled historians to read back,
step by step, into far away ages, and to carry the thread of
Egyptian civilization to its beginnings. Maspero, Eduard Meyer,
Breasted, Petrie and other painstaking students of Egyptology
have given their lives to the task of unraveling the past, both by
deciphering inscriptions and unearthing forgotten cities. From
the tireless efforts of men like these, tombs hidden for centuries
have been recovered, temples and colonnades laid bare of drift-
ing sands, inscriptions transcribed and translated, and volumes
of scholarly material written for the special student, while at
the same time the general reader may find much of interest con-
cerning the life of a remarkable people whose works ha\e borne
testimony through the ages.
Herodotus.
The following lines are taken from the pages of Herodotus
wherein he relates what he saw and heard when he visited
Egypt nearly twenty-five hundred years ago.
" There is no country in all the whole world that hath in it
more marvelous things or greater works of buildings and the
like than hath the land of Egypt. And as the heavens in this
land are such as other men know not — for in the upper parts
there falls not rain but once in a thousand years or more, and
in the lower parts not often — and the river is different from
all other rivers in the earth, seeing that it overflows in the sum-
mer and is at its least in the winter, so also do the manners of
the Egyptians differ from the manners of all other men. For
among them the women buy and sell in the market but the
men sit at home and spin. And even in this matter of spin-
ning they do not as others, for others push the shuttle in the
loom from below upward, but these men push it from above
downward. Also the men carry burdens on their heads, but the
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 35
women carry them on their shoulders. And the women pray
to none, neither god or goddess, but the men pray to all. And
there is no duty laid on a son to succor father or mother, if it
be not his pleasure to do it, but on a daughter there is laid,
whether she will or no.
" In the matter of mourning for the dead, these folks have
a strange custom, for they let grow the hair upon the head and
chin when they mourn, but are shaven at other times. And
whereas other men hold themselves better than the beasts, the
Egyptians have these in great honor, keeping them in their
houses, aye, and worshipping them. Nor do they eat the food
of other men, holding it a shame to be fed on wheat and barley
which others use, and eating the grain of millet only ; and the
dough that is made of it this they knead, trampling it with
their feet ; but mud and like things they are wont to take up
with their hands. . . .
" Now as to the beasts and the honor in which the Egyp-
tians hold them, there are many strange things to be told. The
crocodile some of the Egyptians hold to be sacred, but not all.
And in every city where they hold it, as in Thebes and in the
cities round the lake Moeris, they keep one crocodile to which
they do special honor. This they train to be tame to the hand,
and they put earrings of glass and gold into his ears, and brace-
lets on his forefeet, and give it a portion of food day by day,
and make offerings to it, and when it dies they embalm it and
bury it in the sacred sepulchres. But the people that dwell in
the city of Elphantine count them not to be sacred at all, but
slay and eat them. . . .
" The cat the Egyptians hold in great honor. Of this
beast there is a very marvelous thing to be told. When it
chanceth that a house is burning a strange madness cometh
upon the cats, for they are very desirous to leap into the fire.
And the Egyptians set guards round the place if by any means
they may keep the cats from their purpose ; nor do they care to
quench the fire, if so be that they may do this ; but the cats
nevertheless, making their way through them, or leaping over
them, have their will and so perish. Over this the Egyptians
make great lamentation. If a cat die in the course of nature,
all that are in that house shave their eyebrows only, but all
dwellers in a house where a dog dies shave their heads and
^6 THE world's progress.
whole bodies. The cats, when they are dead, they carry away
for burial to the city of Bubastis, but the dogs they bury each
in tlie city where he dies, only in the holy sepulchres. . . .
" For food the Egyptians have bread made of millet as has
been said before. They have wine made of barley, for the vine
groweth not in their land. Of birds they eat doves and pigeons,
and such small kinds as there are in the country.
"... Such of the Egyptians as dwell in the marshes of
the river have also for food the seed of the water-lilies, which
grow abundantly when the river overfloweth the plains. This
seed is like to the seed of a poppy, and they make of it loaves
which they bake Avith fire, having first dried it in the sun. Also
the root of this water-Hly (which they call the lotus) may be
eaten, being round, and of the bigness of an apple. Other
lilies there are growing in the river, like to roses, which have a
fruit very like to a wasp's comb, and in it many seeds of the
bigness of an olive, which the men eat both green and dry.
Also these marsh folk gather the reeds, and use the upper part
for other things, as for the making of paper and the like, but
the lower part, as much as a cubit's length from the ground
they eat.
" All the Egyptians worship not the same gods, but Isis and
Osiris they all worship and this Osiris is the same as he whom
the Greeks call Bacchus or Dionysus, and his feast is in all
things like to that which the Greeks keep to their God, only
that there is no acting of plays. As for Isis the Greeks call
her Demeter, that is to say, being interpreted. Mother
Earth. . . .
" Let so much then be said about the Egyptians and their
customs and manner of life, and the gods whom they wor-
ship. "
The story of EGYPT. 37
i-i rriiiiiii=9 n=io mini =15 nn—20
C— 100 |'=I000 1=10.000
III! ccnnnii!i=- 4434
EGYPTIAN NUMERATION.
CHAPTER III.
The Pyramid Age.
Menes was the king who succeeded in accomplishing- the
unification of Egypt. We are told by Manetho that he was at
first chief or governor of the eighth nome of Upper Egypt,
whose capital city was Thinis, and being ambitious, subdued
the surrounding nomes, until at last all Egypt was brought
under his control. No doubt earlier chieftains had begun the
work of conquest and left the completion to Menes, whose
personality and executive strength were sufficient to efface the
reigns of his predecessors.
Having brought the Delta under his control and crowned
himself with the white crown of Upper and the red crown of
Lower Egypt, Menes realized that a capital for such a strag-
gling kingdom as his would best be centrally located. He
therefore fixed upon a site just south of the apex of the delta
and built the city of Memphis. Quite possibly there was a set-
tlement here before this time.
It happened that the Nile flowed close to the western hills
in this locality. The king knew well that his capital would be
safer and the more easily protected were the river between it
and possible Asiatic invaders on the east. So he undertook
what has ever since been regarded as a bold feat of engineer-
ing; he built a high embankment across the Nile and com-
pelled the stream to seek a new course farther east. Filling in
the old channel, he built a wall around the new city, caused a
temple to be at once erected to Ptah, the ancient deity of the
locality, and shortly a town grew up around it. Thus we see
the beginnings of the Old Empire, so called by Manetho and
subsequent historians. For convenience scholars sometimes
group Dynasties I. and 11. and Dynasties III. to VI. together,
The first period (3400-2980 B.C.) is called the Thinite age be-
cause the rulers of these two dynasties came from Thinis. The
name Old Kingdom is then limited to Dynasties III. to VI.
(2980-2475 b.c.)
It would be useless for us to attempt to become familiar
3B THE world's progress.
with all these early kings — some fifty in number — with reigns
varying from one to many years. Should we succeed in col-
lecting the meager facts known of each we would have little
to repay us for our trouble. It is more to the purpose that we
know something about the period as a whole — its general
characteristics and attainments.
During this period hieroglyphic writing becaniC widely used,
having been but rarely known before the age of Menes. A
line of forts was built along the Isthmus of Suez to stay in-
vaders from Asia. Tribes on the south were brought into
subjection and pledged service to Egypt in time of war. Stone
quarries and mines were developed and granite ranges sought
and found. In the sixth dynasty one man-of-war sufficed to
accompany the transports sent to bring granite for the kings'
tombs from the southland — a fact recorded with pride by the
pharaohs, since it gave proof of their far reaching might.
From earliest times the Egyptian kings were builders, par-
ticularly of tombs, which during the Old Empire took the form
of pyramids. Of far greater importance than the earthly abode
was thought to be the tomb — the dwelling place for eternal
years, consequently tombs and temples received the attention of
Egypt's kings in early as well as later times.
In 1897 the tomb of Menes was discovered. It was a brick-
lined pit containing an inner chamber of wood. Around the
mummy of the pharaoh had been placed the bodies of different
members of his household. Similar to this were royal tombs
until the Third dynasty, when stone was first used. To the
kings of the Fourth dynasty belong the famous pyramids, un-
surpassed by any subsequently built, and still today the wonder
of the world.
The Egyptians always located their cemeteries toward the
west. Into the west the sun sank at night, and by the same
way the soul started upon its long journey to the realm of
Osiris, god of the future world. The irregularity of the Nile
usually made it possible for the city of the living to grow up on
its eastern bank, while across the stream, on the west shore,
lay the City of the Dead. To the west of Memphis lay its
cemetery or Necropolis, and while this remained the capital of
Egypt, the pyramid-shaped tomb remained in favor. Some-
times the pyramid tombs were smaU ; sometimes they were
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 39
large. More than sixty have been found, and large numbers
have doubtless disappeared for all time. Three, however, were
made so prodigious in size as to cast into obscurity all the rest,
and these have come to be called the " three Pyramids of
Gizeh," quite as though they were sole examples of their kind.
Kliufu was builder of the largest ; this is generally called " the
Great Pyramid." His son Khafre built the one next in size,
known as the "Second Pyramid," while the third, much
smaller than these, was built by Menkure. Were we indif-
ferent to the political development of Egypt, we would still
wish to learn about these mammoth structures which are scaled
each season by wondering tourists, and have excited the ad-
miration and awe of travelers since the time of Herodotus.
It is difficult to realize the vast size of these piles, and we
can do so only by comparing them to things with which we are
familiar. The base of the largest pyramid covers thirteen acres
of ground, solid masonry ; it was originally 482 feet high.
Since it is almost one solid mass of stone, it is not difficult to
credit the statement of Herodotus that it took 100,000 men
twenty years to build it, an additional ten years being necessary
to quarry the stone and bring it to the chosen site.
"The tradition recorded by Herodotus as to the labor
employed, is so entirely reasonable for the execution of such
work, that we cannot hesitate to accept it. It is said that a
hundred thousand men were levied for three months at a
time (i. e. during the three months of the inundation, when
ordinary labor is at a standstill) ; and on this scale the pyra-
mid-building lasted twenty years."
How complete must have been the organization of a gov-
ernment which could promote such an extensive project as
this ! How entirely were the resources of the empire at the
disposal of the king when free citizens could be impressed to
satisfy the vanity of the proud pharaoh ! To have supported
100,000 non-producing men must of itself have taxed the
treasury. The rulers who built these majestic tombs wished to
make their names immortal, as well as to preserve their bodies
from harm and decay. This first they certainly accomplished,
but in light of modern investigation, when each stone lifted
into place has been estimated to have cost at least one human
life, these proud pharaoh s elicit less admiration and commen-
dation than they doubtless thought to win.
40 THE world's progress.
Three kinds of stone were used in the construction of these
pyramids. The inner part, or core, was formed of materir.^
plentiful near the building site. This was a spongy limestone
that was not durable if exposed to the elements, but adequate
when covered with other stone. The successive layers, put on
in the form of steps, were of stone brought from across the
river, having been quarried in the mountains on the east. It
has been conjectured that a causeway was laid from the moun-
tains to the side of the pyramid, and that blocks of stone were
dragged by men this distance. Finally, the beautiful granite
used for outer casing was found near the southern border of
Egpyt, floated down the stream when the water was high, and
having been polished like a mirror, was fitted over the rougher
stone. 2,300,000 blocks, averaging two and one-half tons each,
were used for the construction of the largest pyramid.
" If we had so much stone, what could one do with it ? "
is asked in The Boy Travelers in Egypt. And it is answered :
" You could build a wall four feet high and two feet thick — a
good wall for a farm or a garden — all the way from New York
to Salt Lake City, and were New York in danger of an attack
and desired to surround the whole of Manhattan Island — 21
miles — with a wall forty feet high and twenty feet thick, here
would be material to do it." Rawlinson tries to bring its size
home to us by comparing it to structures with which we are
familiar. He says : " In height it exceeds the capitol at Wash-
ington by nearly 200 feet, and its cubic contents would pro-
vide a city of 22,000 houses solidly built of stone having walls
a foot thick, twenty feet frontage and thirty feet deep, thirty
feet high, allowing one-third for dividing walls."
For several hundred years the Mohammedans have oc-
cupied Egypt and they have taken away quantities of stone
from the lesser pyramids, from temples and other ancient
structures of IMemphis, to be used in their mosques and build-
ings in Cairo, near-by. The outer casing of the Great Pyramid,
beautiful granite as hard as iron, was removed to build the
large mosque of this comparatively modem city. The removal
of this casing has left the under layers bare, and these, step-
like in appearance, are annually scaled by tourists. With the
help of Arab guides, one may ascend to the very top of the
huge pile, gaining thence a splendid view of the surrounding
country.
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 4I
Even the pyramids left cased in granite are no longer
smooth. The weathering of ages has roughened their sides
and dulled their poHsh. They are of a tawny orange color and
gleam by certain lights like gigantic piles of gold.
Within the pyramids were chambers for the remains of
kings and their families and chambers for friends to gather for
worship — for after his death, an Egyptian king was wor-
shipped as a god. Even a spacious gallery was provided near
the top of the Great Pyramid, in order that air might circu-
late freely and thus keep the tomb di*y.
The ambitious, short-sighted Fourth dynasty kings ex-
hausted the resources of their realm. During the Fifth and
Sixth dynasties the pyramids became smaller. Even the long-
suffering land of the Nile could no longer muster vast forces to
provide huge abiding places for the pharaohs. Marvelous
temples would still be erected, and wonderful feats of archi-
tecture accomplished, but the passion for tremendous tombs
had in a measure spent itself.
" The essential feeling of all the earliest work is a rivalry
with nature. In other times buildings have been placed either
before a background of hills, so as to provide a natural setting
to them, or crowning some natural height. But the Eg}^ptian
consented to no such tame co-operation with natural features.
He selected a range of desert hills over a hundred feet high,
and then subdued it entirely, making of it a mere pedestal for
pyramids, which were more than thrice as high as the native
hill on which they stood. There was no shrinking from a
comparison with the work of nature ; but, on the contrary,
an artificial hill was formed which shrunk its natural basis by
comparison, until it seemed a mere platform for the work of
man.
" This same grandeur of idea is seen in the vast masses
used in construction. Man did not then regard his work as a
piling together of stones, but as the e;-ection of masses that
rivalled those of nature. If a cell or chamber was required,
each side was formed of one single stone. . . . If a build-
ing was set up, It was an artificial hill in which chambers
were carved out after it was piled together. . . .
" The sculptor's work, and the painter's, show the same
sentiment. They did not make a work of art to please the
42 The world's progress.
taste as such ; but they rivalled nature as closely as possible.
The form, the expression, the colouring, the glittering trans-
parent eye, the grave smile, all are copied as if to make an
artificial man. The painter mixed his half-tints and his deli-
cate shades, and dappled over the animals, or figured the
feathers of birds, in a manner never attempted in the later
ages. The embalmer built up the semblance of the man in
resins and cloth over his shrunken corpse, to make him as
nearly as possible what he was when alive.
" In each direction man then set himself to supplement, to
imitate, to rival or to exceed, the works of nature. Art, as the
gratification of an artificial taste and standard, was scarcely in
existence ; but the simplicity, the vastness, the perfection, arid
the beauty of the earliest works place them on a different level
to all the workers of art and man's device in later ages. They are
unique in their splendid power, which no self-conscious civiliza-
tion has ever rivalled, nor can hope to rival ; and in their en-
during greatness they may last till all the feebler works of
man have perished."*
»Tetrie; History of Egypt, Vol. I, p. 66.
CHAPTER IV.
The; Age of Darkness.
With the close of the Sixth dynasty, records practically
cease, and few indeed are the facts established regarding those
kings whom Manetho included in his Seventh and Eighth
dynasties.
From earliest times each nome had been the seat of some
noble family — ^the descendants of chieftains, possibly, or per-
haps the recipients of royal land grants. Certain it is that
each nome had its noble family of wide estate, from whose
number the governor was usually chosen, as was also the high
priest of the local temple. By the end of the Sixth dynasty,
the claimants to the throne were not strong enough to hold
together the land they aspired to rule; they maintained their
capital at Memphis, but neither the Delta or Upper Egypt
recognized their sway. On the contrary, each prince in his
own nome tried to increase his individual strength at the ex-
pense of the general government. Asiatic invaders seem to
have strengthened themselves in the Delta, while to the south
Theban princes came into prominence.
During the period which Manetho accorded to the Ninth
and Tenth dynasties, a prince often bought the favor and as-
sistance of as many nobles as he -was able, and with his united
forces established himself in his own vicinity.
The vast resources which had been so completely at the
command of the Fourth dynasty kings were now divided
among many petty nobles, each seeking to aggrandize him-
self. Naturally, no costly tombs could be constructed to per-
petuate the memories of these who now aspired to Egypt's
throne ; the tombs which had to satisfy were less enduring, and
this no doubt explains why so few remains of the period have
come to light in recent years. The thread of history is almost
lost during the age of darkness which included the Seventh,
Eighth, Ninth and Tenth dynasties. Shut off from the dis-
44 The world's progress.
closures of tombs, Egyptologists have turned to the mines and
quarries. All kings of importance have there left traces of
their operations, but the mines contain no tablets, no decrees,
no records of quarrying undertaken in these years, save here
and there an inscription indicating that some noble carried on
work within them on his own behalf.
It is probable that the land passed through a most trying
experience in the time intervening between the Old and the be-
ginning of the Middle Empire, when neither property, pos-
sessions, nor life itself were safe throughout the land, but
anarchy, strife and turmoil were everywhere rife. The kings
maintained their capital at Heracleopolis, but they were in
continual struggle with the princes of Thebes. How great had
been the confusion we may judge when one of the Tenth dy-
nasty rulers takes pride in recording the fact that order had
characterized his reign. " Every official was at his post, there
was no fighting, nor any shooting an arrow. The child was
not smitten beside his mother, nor the citizen beside his wife.
There was no evil-doer nor any one doing violence against his
house. When night came, he who slept on the road gave me
praise, for he was like a man in his house ; the fear of my
soldiers was his protection. "i
The M1DD1.E Empire.*
Order and prosperity returned to Egypt after years of dark-
ness and confusion. Thebes superseded Memphis as the center
of political life. Great material development characterized the
beginning of what Manetho designated as the Middle Empire.
Before taking up the work of the early Theban kings, let us
learn something of the locality wherein they dwelt.
Memphis, as has been shown, was located conveniently to
both Upper and Lower Egypt, while the Nile protected the city
from sudden Asiatic attacks. What then were the points of ad-
vantage for Thebes, lying 400 miles farther south ?
" Here the usually narrow valley of the Nile opens into a
sort of plain or basin.
" The mountains on either side of the river recede, as though
by common consent, and leave between themselves and the
* Trans, by Breasted, Hist. Egypt, 149. The approximate dates of
this period are : Dynasties VII. and VIIJ. Ca. 2475-2445 b. c. ; Dynasties
XI. and X. Ca. 2475-2160 b. c.
'Dynasties XI. and XII.- 2160-178ft b. c
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 45
river's bank a broad amphitheater, which in each case is a rich
green plain — a soil of the most productive character — dotted
with doom and date palms, sometimes growing single, some-
times collected into clumps or groves. On the western side the
Libyan range gathers itself up into a single considerable peak,
which has an elevation of 1,200 feet. On the east the desert-
wall maintains its usual level character, but is pierced by val-
leys conducting to the coast of the Red Sea. The situation
was one favorable for commerce. On the one side was the
nearest route through the sandy desert to the Lesser Oasis,
which commanded the trade of the African interior ; on the
other the way led through the valley of Hammamat, rich with
. . . valuable and rare stones, to a district abounding in
mines of gold, silver and lead, and thence to the Red Sea
coast, from which, even in very early times, there was com-
munication with the opposite coast of Arabia, the region of
gums and spices."*
Such being the location of Thebes, we shall see that it grew
until in time it became the mightiest city of the ancient world.
With the establishment of the Eleventh dynasty (Ca. 2160-
2000 B.C.), the work of reuniting and re-establishing a cen-
tralized government began. The Delta had to be reclaimed
from invaders who had gained the upper hand while the land
was divided against itself. Unity being at last secured, rulers
were free to launch out upon other enterprises. One of the later
kings had a deep well provided for those who served in the
quarries ; another sent an expedition of 3,000 men to bring back
stone for his tomb. These men were also instructed to go
beyond the quarries — to Punt, which must have lain on the
Somali coast of East Africa, and bring back products of that
region. The expedition set out under the leadership of a
nobleman whose report has fortunately come down to us. It
states that his men built stations and made wells along their
route, to the lasting benefit of those who might journey thence.
Part of the detachment was left to quarry stone, while the rest
proceeded to Punt and procured spices, gums, precious woods,
and rare animals. After noting their safe return, the prince
adds: "Never was brought down the like thereof for the
king's court; never was done the like of this by any king's
*Rawlinson, Ancient Egypt, 95.
1—6
46 The world's progress.
confidant sent out since the time of the god. I did this for
the majesty of my lord because he so much loved me."^
The Twelfth dynasty (2000-1788 b.c.) brought forth some
of Egypt's ablest kings. Their creative ability was perhaps not
excelled by subsequent pharaohs. Amenemhet I. (2000-1970
B.C.) proved himself strong enough to curb the power of the
feudal princes. These hereditary nobles had probably received
gifts of land from earlier kings in recognition of loyal service.;
The estates passed from father to son, and while the central
government had been weak, the princes became more and more
aggressive. They fortified themselves, each in his nome, re-
tained large retinues of officials, servants, militia and realized
vast incomes from extensive tracts of arable land. It was
neither possible nor prudent to remodel the entire system, but
Amenemhet I undertook to modify it. Whenever one of these
landed princes died, the king himself chose from the heirs the
one who should succeed him. Naturally, he selected
one whose loyalty to himself and to the government was un-
questioned. Again, the boundaries of the nomes had never been
officially determined, and during the years of confusion, strong
nobles had infringed upon the possessions of weaker ones. The
king made a tour through the country, heard all complaints of
such encroachments, and decided the limits of all disputed
boundaries. This did much to restrict the strength of ambitious
princes.
His son, coming to the throne, subdued the Nubians on
the south and extended the empire to the second cataract ; but
it was left for Sesostris III. to make this conquest sure, and
then to post his decree along the river.
"This is the southern frontier; fixed in the eighth year of
the reign of his majesty. Usurtasen [Sesostris], ever living.
Let it not be permitted to any negro to pass this boundary
northward, either on foot or by boat ; nor any sort of cattle, oxen,
goats, or sheep belonging to the negroes. Except when any
negro comes to trade in the land of Aken, or on any business, let
him be well treated. But without allowing boats of the negToe.«
to pass Heh northward forever."*
* Trans, by Breasted, Ancient Records, I, §433.
* Petrie, Hist, of Egypt, Vol. I, 181.
TH^ STORY OF EGYPT. 47
In gratitude to the king for thus securing to them safety by
repulsing the negroes, the Egyptians sang extravagant hymns
to Sostostris. Some of these have been rendered into EngUsh,
and are regarded as excellent specimens of Egyptian poetry.
The following is one of these songs :
** Twice joyful are the gods,
Thou hast established their offerings.
Twice joyful are thy princes.
Thou hast formed their boundaries.
Twice joyful are thy ancestors before thee.
Thou hast increased their portions.
Twice joyful is Egypt at thy strong arm.
Thou hast guarded the ancient order.
Twice joyful are the aged with thy administration.
Thou hast widened their possessions.
Twice joyful are the two regions with thy valor.
Thou hast caused them to flourish.
Twice joyful are thy young men of support.
Thou hast caused them to flourish.
Twice joyful are thy veterans,
Thou hast caused them to be vigorous.
Twice joyful are the two lands in thy might,
Thou hast guarded their walls.
Twice joyful be thou, O Horus ! widening thy boundary,
Mayest thou renew an eternity of life.'"
AmENEmhET III.
The greatest name of the Twelfth dynasty is that of Amen-
emhet III. (1849-1801 b.c). He directed his attention to inter-
nal improvements. Realizing the dire effects upon Egypt when
the Nile failed to supply sufficient water or when too much water
was forthcoming, he studied various ways of controlling the
river. Once or twice in a century the rainfall, always heavy
in the Abyssinian highlands, is yet greater ; the river rises
rapidly to unexpected heights and works general havoc. Or
sometimes the supply may be less than usual. Having watched
the stream with anxious eyes for many a week, the people
•Petrie, Hist- of Egypt, Vol. I, 182.
48 THE world's progress.
behold it recede, although only the adjacent plains have been
refreshed and upper portions of the valley lie parched and
lifeless, while famine stares Egypt in the face.
Amenemhet III. beheved that a vast reservoir might regu-
late the supply, receiving the water when it was at high flood
and giving it out once more when the stream was low. He
looked about for a natural depression and found it to the west
of Memphis, beyond a narrow range of hills. Canals were
made leading into this basin and Lake Moeris was the result.
Some hundreds of square miles were gained by this new means
of irrigation and the tract thus made arable, became royal
domain. The district is known as the Fayoum. Near its
entrance Amenemhet III. built his pyramid. It differed from
earlier tombs in that the chamber destined to receive his mum-
my was reached by passages even more secret and winding
than ordinary. False doors were placed here and there to mis-
lead any who might attempt to molest the body.
Under his direction, a wonderful building was constructed.
It was called the Labyrinth. Being about 800 feet wide and
1,000 feet long, it contained 1,500 rooms above the ground
and as many more below it. There were many courts with
numerous doors leading from them and Strabo, a Greek geog-
rapher, who saw it long after Amenemhet had taken his jour-
ney to the realm of Osiris, said that the ceilings and sides of
the rooms were made from single stones ! It is believed that
the king planned this structure to serve as a great capitol for
his kingdom, and that there were suites of halls for every nome,
with chapels for their gods. A vast number of chambers
would naturally be required for this, and probably there was
no thought of making the building baffling or bewildering, as
the name labyrinth now signifies. This was counted among the
wonders of the ancient world, but, like the city built around it,
disappeared ages ago. Herodotus has left us a description of
the huge building, written to inform his countrymen of a struc-
ture more remarkable than anything they could boast. When he
saw it, almost five hundred years before the time of Christ, it
was still in perfect condition.
" I visited the place," he says, " and found it to surpass de-
scription ; for if all the walls and other great works of the
Greeks could be put together into one, they would not equal
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 49
this Labyrinth. The pyramids likewise surpass description,
and are severally equal to a number of the greatest works of
the Greeks ; but the Labyrinth surpasses the pyramids. It has
twelve courts, all of them roofed, with gates exactly opposite
one another, six looking to the north, and six to the south. A
single wall surrounds the whole building. It contains two dif-
ferent sorts of chambers, half of them under ground, and half
above ground, the latter built upon the former ; the whole
number is three thousand, of each kind fifteen hundred. The
upper chambers I myself passed through and saw, and what
I say of them is from my own observation ; of the underground
chambers I can only speak from report, for the keepers of the
building could not be induced to show them ; since they con-
tain, they said, the sepulchres of the kings who built the laby-
rinth, and also those of the sacred crocodiles. Thus it is from
hearsay only that I can speak of them ; but the upper chambers
I saw with my own eyes, and found them to excel all other
human productions ; for the passages through the houses and
the varied windings of the paths across the courts, excited in
me infinite admiration, as I passed from these colonnades into
fresh houses, and again from these into courts unseen before.
The roof was, throughout, of stone, like the walls ; and the
walls were carved all over with figures ; every court was sur-
rounded with a colonnade, which was built of white stone, ex-
quisitely fitted together. At the corner of the Labyrinth stands
a pyramid, forty fathoms high, with large figures engraved
upon it, which is entered by a subterranean passage."
In comparison with the Old Empire kings, those of the Mid-
dle Empire seem to us much more modern in spirit. Instead
of merging the whole population into instruments to work out
the pharaoh's fancy, instead of squandering the riches of the
land and the lives of subjects to provide mammoth tombs
which should eternalize the ruler's memory and flame forth
his power and greatness unto succeeding generations, the far-
sighted Twelfth dynasty kings devoted their time and resources
to the improvement of their kingdom. Wells were dug ; roads
constructed ; public buildings erected ; fortifications strength-
ened ; frontiers extended. The attention of the monarch was
directed to the commercial prosperity of the realm, to the ag-
ricultural conditions and their improvement — vn short, the
50 THE world's progress.
best years of the Middle Empire were years of material gain
for the Nile dwellers, wherein men developed the arts of peace,
and the valley testified to wise administration. Through a
second period of depression a nation was to look back upon the
age of its material progress with longing eyes, and still better,
to retain even under adverse conditions standards of govern-
ment and life which would later be recovered. After the
death of the great king, called Amenemhet the Good by his
grateful subjects, none appeared able to adequately fill his
place, and his glorious reig^ was overshadowed by a second
period of darkness.
CHAPTER V.
The Shepherd Kings.*
The Thirteenth dynasty kings were not sufficiently strong
to hold intact the kingdom which passed into their hands. Soon
again the feudal princes of nome and city were contending with
one another for additional power. The Fourteenth dynasty
rulers had their capital in Xois, a Delta city. Both dynasties
lasted but a brief time, filled with unrest and contention. We
can imagine into what state Egypt fell when a negro of Nubia,
of a race despised by the Egyptians, set himself up as their
king. Several princes ruled at the same time in various portions
of the realm. Sources of information for these chaotic years are
scanty; no monuments have come down to us, the inference
being that the resources and energies of the land were required
for more immediate needs than the erection of costly tombs for
rulers of disputed right.
The whole country must have suffered greatly. The system
of irrigation set in order by Amenemhet III. required both
national supervision and national funds for its maintenance. As
neither could have been forthcoming, the food production must
have been materially diminished. Engaged in civil war, Egypt
soon fell a prey to foreign invaders.
For hundreds of years it had been not unusual for Syrian
bands to ask permission to settle within Egyptian borders. In
the tomb of a provincial governor of Upper Egypt has been
found a painting which portrays a company of seventeen Be-
douins bringing presents to the nobleman and asking that they
be allowed to locate in his dominion. In Genesis we read con-
cerning Abram : " And Abram journeyed, going still toward
the south. And there was a famine in the land of Canaan ;
and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there ; for the
famine was grievous in the land." Since Abram was rich in
cattle and in gold, he undoubtedly brought many of his family
and followers to dwell with him in the land of plenty. Similar
incidents were common. If the rainfall was short in Canaan,
in the territory of the Hittites or even in Arabia, Egypt was
' Dynasties XIII to XVIII, including the Hyksos, 1788-1580 b. c
SI
52 thb world's progress.
ever regarded as a last resort. The Nile never failed to supply
water for the flocks; here, too, it was customary to store
grain in royal store-cities, in order that in time of need Egypt
could sell advantageously to her neighbors. In a pastoral age,
such favorable conditions as these were highly prized.
The Pharaohs diligently fortified their frontiers, and it must
not be supposed that in times of peace foreigners were allowed
to come at will into the land. There were, on the contrary,
officers stationed along the boundaries to apprehend any who
wished to enter, to receive their requests and forward them to
the governor of the nome. Until he was heard from, strangers
were detained on the border. It seems to have been usual, how-
ever, to admit such petitioners unless it was thought that they
might become a menace to the state. It naturally came about,
therefore, that the tribes on the east looked with envious eyes
upon the rich valley of the Nile, and when Egypt was disrupted,
her resources and soldiers no longer at the command of one
ruler but divided among several contending nobles — each of
whom valued his personal interests above those of his country —
while anarchy and disorder infested the coveted land, an over-
whelming host of Semitic hordes poured into the Delta, spread-
ing thence into the valley. Before them Egypt was helpless.
Asia and Egypt as well were inhabited in early times by
many wandering or nomadic tribes. A tribe dwelt in one local-
ity while pasturage was good, and when it was exhausted,
would move on to new fields. Sometimes the tribe in possession
of one district would learn that other tribes were drawing near,
and in an age when strangers were considered enemies, this
would furnish sufficient pretext for starting out on the march
again. Periods of unrest sometimes swept over vast areas;
in such a time as this, perhaps, Asiatic tribes poured into Egypt.
In her pitiable plight, the country lay an easy prey to such in-
vaders, who Manetho tells us numbered a quarter of a million.
It is said that they took possession without a battle. Just who
they were or where they came from is not known. We now
know that the Hittites invaded Babylonia during the reign ol
Samsu-ditana, the last king of the First Dynasty of Babylon,
and that this was the indirect cause of the fall of this dynasty
(about 1750 b.c). Scholars are beginning to suspect that the
invasion of Egypt at this time was either led by the Hittites or
ThK story of EGYPT. 53
due to Hittite pressure back of the tribes in Syria-Palestine.
Their kings were called Hyksos, and from a doubtful etymology
of this name they are still styled the "Shepherd kings."
The invading conquerors put many of the Egy^ptians to
death, taking their wives and children into slavery. Worship-
ping gods of their own, they hated the gods of the Egyptians
and destroyed many temples and monuments. Generally speak-
ing, they remained in the Delta and the Fayoum, the Theban
princes ruling in the south as their vassals.
Gradually these fierce Asiatics took on the civilization of
the land they had invaded. They doimed Egyptian dress, spoke
and wrote as the Egyptians, and built temples much like theirs.
The country rallied from its recent disaster and life became not
unlike that of earlier times.
In time the Theban nobles increased in power ; the Hyksos
— or thefr descendants in the Delta — grew alarmed lest the
native princes might become powerful enough to force them
from the throne they had usurped. Determined to check any
threatening strength on the part of the Egyptains, the foreign-
ers tried to bring about open conflict, sure themselves of vic-
tory. At first the Theban princes sought to avert war, but
the demands of the Hyksos grew heavier. There was a folk-
story to the effect that the usurping king in the Delta sent word
to the Theban prince that the noise of the sacred hippopotami
in the pools and canals allowed him rest neither by night or day,
and must be disposed of. However simple this appears, it may
easily signify that the final break came because of religious
difficulties.
Roused at last, the Egyptians determined to drive the in-
vaders from their land. This occurred during the Seventeenth
dynasty — for Manetho continues his list of Egyptian kings
throughoui the period of foreign rule. The Asiatics were
driven north, and the first pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty,
King Ahmose (1580-1350 B.C.), gathered a vast army and
forced them beyond his borders. Five years were consumed
in accomplishing this, and in the end many of the foreigners
were reduced to slavery.
Summing up the results of the invasion of the Hyksos, we
may note that Egypt learned much during her period of oppres-
sion. Before the invasion, her fighting had been confined to the
defense of her frontiers. Asiatic and African, and the tribes
54 The world s progress.
with which she had waged war had been her inferiors. In th«
Asiatic tribes she had at last met a people more skillful in
military affairs than she. They used horses and chariots, and
their mode of warfare was superior to the clumsy, undisciplined
efforts of the Nile-dwellers. It was by adopting their methods
that Egypt finally succeeded in expelling them from the land.
Hereafter we find the horse and chariot used extensively in
Egyptian wars.
Another important result was the elimination of the feudal
lords. They had opposed both the Hyksos and the successful
king Ahmose, and fighting for personal interests alone, had most
of them perished in the conflict. The vast areas which had been
their portion reverted to the crown and became royal domain.
It has been thought that Joseph served under one of the
foreign kings, and that the conditions spoken of at the close of
his career — when all Egypt was subdued and at the command
of the Pharaoah — coincide with the situation shortly after the
feudal lords had disappeared as a political factor. All this is,
however, doubtful.
In marked contrast with the gloom of long years under
foreign oppression shines the splendor of the New Empire.
The Beginning oe the New Empire.^
The wide differences which we have noted concerning dates
accepted by various Egyptologists disappear as we approach the
Christian era, and there is general agreement that the sixteenth
century before Christ saw the dawn of the New Empire which
had its beginning when the independence of Egypt was estab-
lished and Hyksos rule thrown off. Petrie calls this the most
glorious page in Egyptian history.
Ahmose had much to do before the safety of the govern-
ment was assured. While he pursued the Hyksos into Asia,
crippling their allies, the Ethiopians infringed upon his southern
border. Three different expeditions had to be sent against them
before they were reduced to submission. Then only did the
king find opportunity to direct his attention to the domestic
concerns of the kingdom. Thebes, the capital, was given first
consideration in the matter of building and adornment. The
foundations for the famous temple of Karnak, of which we
shall hear more at length, were begun.
* Dynasties XVIII to XX, 1580-1090 b. c.
THE STORY OF EGYPT, 55
Ahmose's son succeeded him, but aside from putting- down
an uprising of the troublesome Ethiopians, Httle of importance
attached to his administration.
It was left for Ahmose's grandson, Thutmose^ L, to give
Egv'pt the position she was to occupy among the nations for
many years. Thutmose I, was instinctively a soldier. Coming
to the throne when a mere boy, the Ethiopians made war directly,
thinking they could easily overcome so inexperienced a king.
Thutmose at once gave indication of his capacity by marching
immediately into their territory and defeating them with tre-
mendous slaughter. To prevent further annoyance, from these
people the king divided their country into districts and over
each he placed an Egyptian official. Thus the land of Kush be-
came an Egyptian province.
Having now a well organized army, Thutmose pressed into
Asia — for the experience of Ahmose had shown that rich
plunder there awaited the victor. Some tribes yielded volun-
tarily to Eg>-pt ; others were forced to yield.
Although the king penetrated some distance east of the
Euphrates, these districts were not permanently won for Egypt.
On the contrary, we shall find that subsequent pharaohs did
over and over again what this king attempted, and for this
reason : each time a nation was conquered, Thutmose withdrew
his soldiers from it, imposing tribute and asking hostages. So
long as the tribute was forthcoming, the tribe was left undis-
turbed. This gave wide opportunity for the conquered peoples
to unite among themselves and make attempts to shake off
control whenever a new ruler succeeded to the throne of Egypt
This proved eventually a most extravagant policy for Thutmose
to have followed.
Henceforth Eg^'pt had to take her place as a military power,
and with her every new aspiring nation had to reckon. When
we recall the peaceful Egyptians of early times, secluded in their
quiet valley, disliking foreigners and having as little intercourse
with them as possible, we realize what a change had been
wrought in them by their contact with the Hyksos during the
years of their oppression.
Egypt's future was largely marked out by Thutmose I., as
later reigns demonstrated. Perhaps his greatness has not been
wholly appreciated. "The greatness of Thutmose^ I. has
* Usually written Thothmes. The form Thutmose is, however, nearar
the origina*.
56 THE world's progress.
scarcely been sufficiently recognized by historians. It may be
true that he did not effect much ; but he broke ground in a
new direction ; he set an example which led on to grand results.
To him it was due that Egypt ceased to be the isolated, unag-
gressive power that she had remained for perhaps ten centuries,
that she came boldly to the front and aspired to bring Asia into
subjection. Henceforth she exercised a potent influence beyond
her borders — an influence which affected, more or less, all the
"western Asiatic powers. She had forced her way into the
comity of the great nations. Henceforth whether it was for
good or for evil, she had to take her place among them, to
reckon with them, as they reckoned with her, to be a factor in
the problem which the ages had to work out — ^what should be
the general march of events, and what states anr nations should
most affect the dectiny of the world."*
' Rawlinson, Ancient Egypt, 168.
THE STORY OP EGYPT. 5;^
CHAPTER VI.
The Earliest Queen in History.
We now come upon a story in Egyptian history. It might
easily begin with " Once upon a time," and better still, it is
true. Of course we all know that when people live hundreds
and thousands of years in a country and reach a high degree
of civilization, when they build noble structures, become pro-
ficient in art, write books, and have developed a high degree of
culture, their lives have been full of absorbing experiences,
just as ours are today, and we may be sure that these Egyp-
tians, who sometimes seem a bit monotonous in the light of
recorded history, would be interesting enough did we know
more about their daily lives.
In many families it has been customary to keep a family
record — in the Bible often, sometimes in special record books.
The habit is less prevalent than it once was, but we have doubt-
less all seen such records and recall that they generally include
births, marriages and deaths occurring in the family. From
them, however, one could get no idea in years to come of the
happy holiday gatherings, social pleasures, and family cele-
brations frequently enjoyed.
It is somewhat the same with nations. They leave moment-
ous events in their history carved in marble, painted on can-
vas or written in whatever fashion they have known ; but it
is left largely to us to weave in the rest of the story as best
we may — and too often this part is neglected. People long
since vanished seem too often like unreal creatures, who fought
in wars, established dynasties, enjoyed periods of peace and
suffered in times of tumult, and these events appear to be fitted
together like the pieces of a puzzle. Had historians keener
imaginations they might bring these ancient people before us as
distinctly human, so that, like the characters of Dickens and
Scott, they would abide in our memories. But then you see,
someone would suggest that this was no longer history.
However, the world has seen a few queens who have
apparently determined to relegate dullness and monotony to
jg THE WORIJ>'S PROGRESS.
kings— as for themselves they would have none of it. Such
was Good Queen Bess of England, and such also was Queen
Hatshepsut of long-forgotten Egypt. , , , , , ,
Thutmose I. had been a great warrior; he had subdued
the Nubians and Ethiopians in Africa, and then, roused to a
spirit of conquest, he had pushed into Asia, revenged the indig-
nities inflicted upon his people by the Hyksos, and had made his
power felt far beyond the Euphrates. When no longer able to
rule, he left the widest empire the worid had yet seen to his
daughter Hatshepsut, aged twenty-four, and to his seventeen
year old son. Hatshepsut had inherited her father's great ability
and tireless energy; the son was weak and purposeless. His
untimely death gave occasion for many both then and since to
wonder if his vindictive sister did all she could to save him.
Certain it is that Queen Hatshepsut rallied sufficiently from the
shock of his death to reign for many years.
It was very discor.certing to a nation so strongly held by
tradition and veneration for established customs as was Egypt,
to have a woman on the throne of the Pharaohs. This is
amusingly shown in temples where her loyal supporters sought
to lessen prejudices felt because she was a woman by por-
traying pictures designed to show that her birth had been
attended by special marks of favor and of prophecy on the
part of the gods. In these, however, she is often represented as
a boy. She seems to have regretted not having been a man,
and no doubt the matter was constantly thrust before her and
she was forced to feel how greatly this placed her at a dis-
advantage among her subjects. She seems to have made
heroic efforts to modify the differences in sex as much as
possible by assuming a beard and by having herself represented
in art in a king's official dress. Furthermore, a bewildering
use of pronouns seem to have been employed concerning her,
and such phrases as : " his majesty herself," and others similar
have come down to us.
Great benefits came to Egypt when the ruler's attention
was directed from conquest to internal improvements, and
these last occupied the energy of this capable queen throughout
her reign. Instead of erecting pyramids or tombs, she at once
began to build a temple in which she might be worshipped
»ft«r death — for in Egypt a ruler wai worshipped as a god after
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 59
his death. Nor would Hatshepsut have her temple like those
around her. Rather, a site was chosen out of Thebes, where the
hills rose to quite an elevation. A series of four terraces, each
having its beautiful colonnade, led to the temple itself, which
was hewn out of the rocky hill.
The young queen wished to build such a temple as she
fancied might have been sacred to Amon — the ancient deity of
Thebes — in his own land of Punt, on the East African coast.
It was a myth of the Egyptians that long before they existed,
the gods abode in the land of Punt, called by them the Holy-
land, or God's land. Tradition held that in this land the myrrh
tree was sacred to Amon, and so one day Queen Hatshepsut
announced to her ministers that the god Amon had revealed
to her his desire that here in Thebes, before the new temple,
his favorite myrrh tree should grow.
Now myrrh incense for offerings had been procured from
merchantmen who brought their spices into Egypt, and the
tree itself grew only in Punt, which lay to the furthermost
corner of the ancient world. However, the queen was deter-
mined to satisfy the god — and incidentally, perhaps, her own
fancy. So, nothing daunted, her subjects set to work to con-
struct a fleet suitable for the journey necessary for procuring
the incense-bearing tree.
It is supposed that some canal connected the river with
the Red Sea ; whether or not this was the case, the ships were
built at Thebes, and there is no record of their having been
carried over land to the port. They were fitted out with both
sails and oars, so that the expedition might not be hindered
by calm weather. Beside the oarsmen and the crew, soldiers
accompanied the fleet to give protection should it be needed.
After many days the ships came at last to the Holy Land, or
Punt. Messengers were dispatched to the native king with
presents from Queen Hatshepsut and a request that he
acknowledge the sovereignty of Egypt, and allow her subjects
to bring back products from his land — especially the coveted
incense-tree. The king was delighted with the gifts and made
up a procession to go down to the shore and meet the Egyptians.
He had a funny little dwarf wife, belonging, it is supposed, to
one of the dwarf tribes of interior Africa. She on her donkey,
her three children, the king and several of his chiefs, proceeded
6o THE world's progress.
to the shore to greet the strangers. They were led to the native
houses — curious round huts built on piles and entered only
by ladders, while palm and incense trees sheltered their occu-
pants from the hot rays of the tropical sun. The travelers were
treated royally throughout their sojourn in the land of Punt,
and were allowed to exchange the products they had brought
from the valley of the Nile for the native products — such as
ebony, ivory, incense, leopard skins, metals, and the much
desired myrrh trees.
At length the Egyptians were ready to set sail for the
home land, and now some of the natives, the dwarf queen, some
of the chief men and others decided to return with them and
see the queen of great renown ; so with these for passengers, the
ships cleared port.
Upon arrival, their return was the occasion for a gala-day
at the capital. The state troops were out on parade, the veterans
of the expedition formed in procession with the thirty-one myrrh
trees which had been carefully packed and shielded under awn-
ing from the sun's rays ; the strange animals from Punt — dogs,
baboons, monkeys, a tame leopard with his keeper, natives who
gave their war dance, the dwarf queen of Punt, who with her
chief men brought gifts to Hatshepsut — all these made up a
great spectacle sufficiently absorbing to the throngs who filled
the streets of Thebes. All went to the temple where Queen
Hatshepsut made offerings to Amon, and then the myrrh trees
were planted before his temple. It would be interesting to
know how many of these thirty-one trees withstood the radical
change, but probably trees which had occasioned such a national
outlay had no choice but to flourish.
Queen Hatshepsut felt a natural pride in the result of her
expedition which had the effect of establishing lasting trade
between the two countries, to the benefit of both. She did not
wish it to be forgotten, and so had the whole story depicted on
the walls of her temple by artists who probably accompanied the
fleet. There some of the pictures may still be seen. The first
portrays the embarking of the Egyptian fleet. An inscription
before it reads : "These are the ships which the wind brought
along with it. The voyage on the sea, the attainment of the
longed-for aim in the Holy Land, the happy arrival of the
Egyptian soldiers in the land of Punt, according to the arrange-
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 9l
ment of Amon, King of the gods, Lord of the terrestrial thrones
in Thebes, in order to bring to him the treasure? of the whole
land in such quantities as will satisfy him. This was done by
the Queen of Egypt, the daughter of the Sun, never has any-
thing similar been done in the times of a former king in this
country."*
The second scene shows the reception In Punt ; the third,
the traffic ; the fourth picture, the loading of ships for the
return. Men are seen bringing trees and other products of Punt
on board This inscription reads : "The loading of the ships
of transport with a great quantity of the magnificent products
of Arabia,^ with all kinds of precious woods of the Holy Land,
with heaps of incense, resin, with verdant incense trees, with
ebony, with pure ivory, with gold, and silver from the land of
Amon, with tesep-wood and the cassia bark, incense, hounds,
skins of leopards, apes, monkeys, with women and children.
Never has a coming been made like this by any king since the
creation of the world."
The fifth is the "Return to Thebes." The accompanying
inscription : "Excursion completed satisfactorily , happy
arrival at Thebes to the joy of the Egyptian soldiers. The
princes of Punt after arrival in this country, bringing with them
costly things of the Arabian^ land, such as never had yet been
brought by any Egyptian king, for the Supreme Majesty of the
god Amon-Ra, Lord of the terrestrial thrones."
The sixth scene represents the presentation of the tribute
of Punt to the Queen, while princes of that land kneeling before
her ask for peace.
"Homage to thy countenance,
O Queen of Egypt, Sun,
Beaming like the sun-disk
After your mistress, who is
Arabia's^ mistress."
In the seventh painting the Queen offers gifts to Amon;
the eighth shows the weighing of the incense; the ninth,
the formal announcement of the successful expedition before
* These inscriptions are translated in Records of the Past. ed. by
Sayce, Vol. X
'The translation is to be corrected to Punt
1—6
62 THE WORIJ)*S PROGRESS.
Amon, and the tenth and last, the formal announcement of
the happy issue before the Egyptian court.
Other paintings which adorn the walls of this temple,
depicting the birth of the Queen and the guardianship exer-
cised over her by the goddess Hathor, while less famous are
quite as indelible and interesting from a social standpoint.
This temple in its architectural conception was a departure
from Egyptian models. It impresses us with its fine pro-
portion and the skillful use of the colonnade.
It has not long been accessible to visitors, having been
uncovered only in the last few years.
Other building enterprises were undertaken by Queen
Hatshepsut, notably the erection of two obelisks of polished
granite in honor of Amon.
Possessing some tributary territory in Asia and Punt and
maintaining a policy of peace, the national revenue was much
increased. The proud queen left a record of her kingdom's
prosperity chronicled in stone : " My southern boundary is
as far as Punt ; my eastern boundary as far as the marshes of
Asia, and the Asiatics are in my grasp ; my western boundary
is as far as the mountain of Manu (or the sunset) ; my fame
is among the Sand dwellers altogether. The myrrh of Punt
has been brought to me, all the luxurious marvels of this country
were brought to my palace in one collection. They have
brought me the choicest products, of cedar, of juniper, and of
meru-wood ; all the goodly sweet woods of God's-land. I
brought the tribute of Libya, consisting of ivory and seven
hundred tusks which were there, numerous panther skins of
five cubits along the back and four cubits wide.'"
In addition to new structures, Queen Hatshepsut repaired
temples fallen in decay. In one of these temples she caused
to be written : " I have restored that which was in ruins,
I have raised up that which was unfinished since the Asiatics
were in the midst of the Northland, and the barbarians in the
midst of them, overthrowing that which had been made while
they ruled in ignorance of Ra."*
Thutmose III., a younger brother— a mere child at the death
ofjus father— grew restless at being held so long from the
•Trans, by Breasted, History of Egypt. 280
•Ibid.
The story O^ EGYPT.
63
throne by his ambitious sister. The sudden death of the queen
again raised the question as to whether the sovereign had died
as a result of court intrigue. Certain it is that Thutmose III.
retahated for the restraint the queen had exercised over him
by commanding that her name be stricken from all the monu-
ments she had erected, his own to be substituted. Fortunately
his workmen followed his instructions so badly that it has been
possible to read the original name in many cases, and thus
possible to trace the career of the world's earliest recorded
queen. Thus have later ages been able to realize how well
Queen Hatshepsut met the requirements of her day, and to
appreciate her courage in overcoming the prejudices which as
a woman on the throne of the Pharaohs she is sure to have
encountered.
QUEKN HATSHEPSUT.
6«f thr worij>'s progress.
CHAPTER Vll.
Great Military Kings.
The accession of a new king was the signal for Asiatic
nations, long held in tribute, to revolt from a servitude that
had always been galling to their pride. Thutmose III. at once
estabhshed his reputation as a king of prompt decision and
strength by marching immediately into the revolting territories
and defeating the league formed against him. During his
reign of some fifty years he is reputed to have carried on
nineteen campaigns. The wealth of Egypt was materially
increased by these expeditions which were frequently maraud-
ing excursions rather than open-battle victories.
"Altogether Thothmes [Thutmose] III. is said to have car-
ried off from the subject countries about 11,000 captives, 1,670
chariots, 3,639 horses, 4,491 of the larger cattle, more than 35,-
000 goats, silver to the amount of 3,940 pounds, and gold to the
amount of 9,954 pounds. He also conveyed to Egypt from the
conquered lands enormous quantities of corn and wines, together
with incense, balsam, honey, ivory, ebony, and other rare
woods, lapis lazuli, furniture, statues, vases, dishes, basins,
tent-poles, bows, habergeons, fruit-trees, live birds, and
monkeys I With a curiosity which was insatiable, he noted
all that was strange or unusual in the lands which he visited,
and sought to introduce the various novelties into his own
proper country. Two unknown kinds of birds, and a variety
of the goose, which he found in Mesopotamia, and transported
from the valley of the Khabour to that of the Nile, are said
to have been * dearer to the king than anything else.' His
artists had instructions to make careful studies of the different
objects, and to represent them faithfully on his monuments.
We see on these 'water-lilies as high as trees, plants of a
growth like cactuses, all sort of trees and shrubs, leaves,
flowers, and fruits, including melons and pomegranates ; oxen
and calves also figure, and among them a wonderful animal
with three horns. There are likewise herons, sparrow-hawks,
geese and doves.' All these appear gaily intermixed in the
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 65
pictures, as suited the simple childlike conception of the artist.
An inscription tells the intention of the monarch. ' Here,' it
runs, * are all sorts of plants and all sorts of flowers of the
Holy Land, which the king discovered when he went to the
land of Ruten to conquer it. Thus says the king — I swear
by the sun, and I call to witness my father Amon, that all is
plain truth ; there is no trace of deception in that which I
relate. What the splendid soil brings forth in the way of
production I have portrayed in these pictures, with the inten-
tion of offering them to my father Amon, as a memorial for
all times.' '"
Egypt had now become so powerful that many of the
Phoenician cities voluntarily came under her protection, think-
ing in this way they could best secure safety for their ex-
tensive commerce on the seas. The Phoenicians were the mid-
dle-men for antiquity and desired above all to keep their tri-
remes safe from sea pirates. Seeking the protection of the
greatest world power, in this age they turned to Egypt.
A vast amount of Asiatic plunder found its way to the
temples as offerings to the gods who were supposed to have
made victory possible. This accumulation of wealth within
the temples proved a most important factor in strengthening
the priesthood — a power with w^hich the future had to reckon.
A song of victory, composed in honor of Thutmose HI.,
is preserved in the temple of Karnak. The god Amon is sup-
posed to be speaking. We may be sure that it was not wholly
the flattery of priests, written to appease the ruler, but that
it embodied the general opinion as to the power bestowed by
the god upon the king, who was his representative upon earth.
» Rawlinson, Ancient Egypt, 196.
fl6 THE WORU>'S PROGRESS.
Hymn oe Victory.* (Amon speaking.)
I have come, causing thee to smite the princes of Zahi ;
I have hurled them beneath thy feet among their highlands.
I have caused them to see thy majesty as lord of radiance.
So that thou hast shone in their faces like my image.
I have come, causing thee to smite the Asiatics,
Thou hast made captive the heads of the Asiatics of Retenu.
I have caused them to see thy majesty equipped with thy adornment
When thou takest the weapons of war in the chariot
I have come, causing thee to smite the eastern land,
Thou hast trampled those who are in the districts of God's-Land.
I have caused them to see thy majesty like a circling star.
When it scatters its flame in fire, and gives forth its dew.
I have come, causing thee to smite the western land,
Keftyew and Cyprus are in terror.
I have caused them to see thy majesty as a young bull,
Firm of heart, ready-homed, irresistible.
I have come, causing thee to smite those who are in their marshes,
The lands of Mitanni tremble under fear of thee.
I have caused them to see thy majesty as a crocodile.
Lord of fear in the water, unapproachable.
I have come, causing thee to smite those who are in their isles ;
Those who are in the midst of the Great Green (sea) hear thy
roarings.
I have caused them to see thy majesty as an avenger,
Who rises upon the back of his slain victim. . . .
I have come, [causing thee to smite the uttermost ends of the lands,
The circuit of the Great Circle (Okeanos) is included in thy grasp.
I have caused them to see thy majesty as a lord of wing (hawk).
Who seizeth upon that which he seeth, as much as he desires.
* Breasted. Ancient Records. II. §§ 658f.
THE STORY O^ EGYPT. 67
I have come, causing thee to smite the Nubian Troglodytes,
As far as Shat (they) are in thy grasp.
I have caused them to see thy majesty as thy two brothers.'
I have united their two arms for thee in victory.
Thy two sisters,'^ I have set them as protection behind thee.
The arms of my majesty are above, warding off evil.
I have caused thee to reign, my beloved son,
Horus, Mighty Bull, Shining in Thebes, whom I have begotten in
uprightness of heart.
Thutmose, living forever, who hast done for me all that my ka
desired ;
Thou hast erected my dwelling as an everlasting work,
Enlarging and extending it more than the past which has been.
Thou hast feted the beauty of Amon-Re,
Thy monuments are greater than those of any king who has been.
When I commanded thee to do it, I was satisfied therewith ;
I established thee upon the Horus-throne of millions of years.
Thutmose III. left his individuality strongly stamped upon
the empire his military skill had welded together. Tribute
poured into his coffers from all the petty nations throughout
western Asia, from the tribes of the Sahara, and lands south
of Egypt. He was reckoned without question the greatest mili-
tary leader the country ever produced, and he was a tireless
builder. The great temple of Amon in the city of Thebes was
his pride and many other temples were built and restored
by him. He was succeeded by his son, but no very important
event claims our attention until the accession of his great grand-
son, Amenhotep IV.
The beautiful Queen Tiy was the mother of this monarch.
There is no foundation for the oft repeated assertion that she
was of foreign, probably Asiatic, origin. Maspero's belief that
she was of Egyptian (perhaps obscure) origin is most probable.
We may well believe that she exercised considerable power over
her son, but we have no evidence for asserting that it was from
her that he received the new religion which he attempted to
force upon the country, as a result of which the whole land
was thrown into a tumult
* Horus and Set.
*Isis and Nephthys.
68 THE world's progress.
We have already seen that Egypt was originally composed
of many little states, each independent of the rest and each
having its own religious system and customs. As the many
states were assimilated into one, a state religion resulted, into
which the main elements of each local cult were combined.
Although the people throughout the land worshipped the state
god, the local gods were always more particularly endeared
to the masses. Now had Amenhotep IV. desired to change
the state god, the official deity, the people would have accepted
the change readily, but when he attempted to sweep away the
entire religious system of his realm and substitute an utterly
new system, the masses could not understand such a radical
change. They were enraged at what they considered an indig-
nity put upon their gods and the gods of their fathers.
Realizing how impossible it would be to accomplish his
reform in the ancient city of Thebes, the king determined to
change his capital. Thebes Ijad long been the religious as
well as the political center, and the worship of Amon was
fundamentally associated with the city. In order to set up the
worship of one deity, Aton — the Solar Disk — in place of Amon,
with the complex system of deities, Amenhotep IV. went north
of Thebes and began the construction of a new capital^ which
was never completed. Its name signified "The Horizon of the
Solar Disk." Within this new capital the new religion was to
be firmly established and thence spread throughout the realm.
Just what teachings this religion embodied is not now under-
stood. While the sun was worshipped in a new form as Aton,
this may have been merely symbolic of one God — one Spirit,
felt to be one and alone. Acceptance of the Solar Disk religion
necessitated an abandoning of all earlier deities, especially the
powerful Amon, and his name was commanded to be stricken
from all monuments throughout the land.
The result of this religious crusade was a total failure.
Amenhotep IV. realized how great was the innovation he sought
to make, but he underestimated the strength of the priests of
Amon, the treasures of whose temple at Thebes were loaded with
' On the site of the modern Tell el-Amarna, about a hundred and
sixty miles south of Cairo, on the east bank of the Nile. Here the
famous Tell el-Amarna Letters were discovered in 1887.
H
O
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 69
the spoil of Asia, This "reform" while in line with the the-
ology, was utterly at variance with the popular religion of the
day. Angered beyond measure by the injury to their faith, the
people rose up against the new teaching. The old-time worship
was reinstated, the former deities elevated to their former dig-
nity, and the Eighteenth dynasty which had begun so auspi-
ciously came to an end in confusion and disorder.
Karnak.
The temple of Karnak belongs to both the Eighteenth and
Nineteenth dynasties. Thutmose III., Amenhotep II. and Amen-
hotep III. each added rooms to the great structure, although it
was left for Seti I. to build the crowning Hall of Pillars. Three
centuries witnessed its erection and many kings contributed to
its greatness. Most famous of all Theban architecture, it is
still mighty in its ruins.
Karnak is the name of one of the four districts into which
the irregular Nile divided the city of Thebes. From this dis-
trict, or ward, the great temple dedicated to Amon — ancient
deity of Thebes — took its name.
In some ways, perhaps, the temples of Egypt corresponded
to the temples of the Greeks, or even to modern churches, yet
there were material differences. Indeed, the similarity is slight.
Modern churches are supposedly places of worship ; Greek
temples were erected in honor of Greek gods and thither
offerings were brought by a trusting people. Egyptian temples
were built by rulers in honor of some god whose help and
protection they believed had enabled them to put down their
enemies and given their country its victories and prosperity.
While a temple was erected especially in honor of some par-
ticular deity, as Karnak was dedicated to Amon, other deities
might have shrines within it. While it did honor to the
god whose protection had allowed the ruler to rise triumphantly
above all obstacles, yet it was the glory of the king that the
temple exalted — his pictures adorned the walls, his deeds were
set forth in minute detail, his courage in war and relentless
energy in times of peace, — these were carved in stone and
written in hieroglyphics until it was difficult to find a section
of wall, a column, a stone ceiling unadorned. Hymns of
TO tnt world's progress.
victory were inscribed in the temples ; songs of praise and fill'
some flattery not infrequently were composed by the priests.
Sometimes the god who presided over the temple seems to
have been well nigh lost sight of, yet even so, honor was
accorded him, since the king was his representative on earth.
Because Karnak received the particular care of many kings, it
is one of the most interesting temples to study, apart from its
beauty, its stupendous size and proportions.
Lists of dimensions are seldom interesting, and yet, unless
we compare the size of Egyptian structures to others known to
us, we fail utterly to grasp the tremendous scale on which
these people built. We have mentioned the avenue, more than
a mile in length, guarded on either side with sphinxes, which
connected this temple with one built by Queen Hatshepsut. This
avenue led finally to a gateway, flanked on both sides by
towers. Either of these towers were themselves spacious
enough to have contained a temple. The temple court was
enclosed by a wall 25 feet thick and varying from 60 to 100
feet in height. Vast wealth was stored in the temple, and this
wall made it possible, in an age before gunpowder, to protect
the place from sudden attacks — always possible contingencies.
The temple itself was 1,180 feet long and 600 feet wide, and
was composed of many rooms and halls built by various kings.
We shall give attention to one alone — the famous Hall of
Pillars.
Often has it been said that to describe this hall and do it
justice exceeds the power of mortals. It is on such a vast
scale that modern times have produced no structures with
which to compare it.
The Hall of Pillars was originally 329 feet long and 170
feet in width. Through its center were placed two rov^s of
columns, six in each row. Excluding pedestal and capital,
these measured 60 feet in height and in circumference were so
large that should six men stand with arms extended, fingers
touching, they could scarcely encompass one. Seven rows of
pillars, somewhat smaller, were placed on either side of these ;
the ceiling was supported by all these columns and was formed
of mammoth blocks of stone. Finally the entire interior was
covered with sculptures, paintings, and hieroglyphics — all re-
counting the exploits of the king who built the hall. In a
similar fashion the entire temple was ornamented.
THE STORY OF EGYPT.
71
King succeeded king and each burned with ambition to
exceed the skill of his predecessor. Room after room was
added to Karnak and the original plan greatly expanded. Seti
I. however built on such a tremendous plan that none other
eclipsed him, and the Hall of Pillars remains today a mighty
monument to a mighty ruler.
AMMON-RA, THE GREAT GOD OF
TEEBBS.
72 THE wori,d's progress.
CHAPTER VIII.
The Nineteenth Dynasty/
Before Seti 1., founder of the Nineteenth dynasty, succeeded
to the throne, peace and order had been once more restored to
Egy^pt. One important change had crept into the military Hfe
of the country, which was to lead to trouble later on. Here-
tofore, Egypt had depended solely upon her national troops
to protect her borders and maintain her position as first
among the nations. Now her armies were increased by merce-
naries— foreign soldiers hired to do her fighting for her. His-
tory has shown that uniformly when a people ceases to depend
upon its own citizens for the main strength of its army, taking
instead hired soldiers who fight simply for the love of fighting
and for gain, serving one cause today and another tomorrow, —
whenever a nation has adopted this policy of providing its
armed forces, its years of strength are numbered. So it was
in Egypt. Troops from Libya, from Nubia and Ethiopia
made up her armies. During times of peace they returned to
their kindred and gave glowing accounts of the vast wealth
of the Nile valley. It came about naturally then, that African,
as well as Asiatic, tribes looked with longing eyes upon the
coveted country and stood ready at the first sign of internal
weakness to revolt and share the spoils. Strong rulers of the
Nineteenth dynasty held their possessions intact, and foreign
nations bided the time when the first sign of weakness should
be the signal for action.
The immediate successor of Thutmose III. had little trouble
in keeping Syria in subjection. Taxes regularly reached Thebes.
During the reigns of the Amenhoteps, III. and IV., the Hittites
began pushing south from Asia Minor and organizing the revolt
against Egypt. Upon ascending the throne Seti I. found it
expedient to push into western Asia and quell a vigorous upris-
ing. He was one of Egypt's most capable and farsighted kings,
and being as well a fearless warrior, he carried all before him.
He struck terror to the hearts of his enemies and returned home
'1350-1205 B. c
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 73
to find the Libyans threatening his western borders. After
defeating their chiefs with great slaughter, Seti I. received r,
large number of their soldiers into his army as mercenaries.
This did very well for the time, but before four hundred vears
had passed, their chiefs had become powerful enough to snatch
the throne of Egypt from its rightful claimants.
Like most Egyptian rulers, Seti L was a builder. From
earliest years in Egypt, imposing structures had supplied surest
means by which a monarch could leave evidences of his power.
The position of chief architect to the king had been filled by
princes, who held it as a post of honor. Often the king's
sons planned temples for the king's construction, and not in-
irequently gave personal supervision to their erection.
During the last period of civil disorder, many public
monuments and temples had fallen into decay. These Seti L
caused to be restored. He invariably adhered to the original
ideas of the builder, adding but an inscription to show that by
him they were restored. In this respect his course differed
widely from that of many of the Egyptian kings, notably
Ramses IL, who boldly appropriated scores of temples and
monuments, substituting his name for that of the original
builder. Frequently his workmen did their task so badly that
the first name has been deciphered. In other cases, the true
builder of the temple is now uncertain.
It was this king who erected the Hall of Pillars, of which
we have just learned. While temples were erected and restored
throughout the land, much of his attention was directed to
Thebes — the great and splendid city so long the capital of
Egypt.
Thebes was built on the east side of the river. On this
side dwelt the pharaohs, the wealthy, and the poor. Here
too were the shops, the places of business and amusement. In
fact, all the interests of living, pulsing Thebes were centered
nere, Ovt this side also, in the district of Karnak, was the
great temple of Amon. South of it rose the palace of the king ;
around this were mansions of the wealthy, while in the narrow
streets reaching into the desert lived those of moderate and
limited means. South of Karnak lay the district of Luxor,
and along the river between these two districts stood the mud
huts of the poor.
74 THE world's progress.
Crossing the Nile to the western bank, one came into
radically different surroundings. Here lay the City of the
Dead. This was quite unlike any cemetery of modern times.
Here were temples, tombs of kings and queens, tombs of the
wealthy and the prosperous citizens, and the symbolic lake of
the dead. Here were the unpretentious tombs of the masses.
Nor was this all. We have seen that the Egyptian felt it neces-
sary to supply his dead with all the necessities of life, such
as food, furniture, and ornaments. Here, then, were the shops
where such things might be obtained. Here were the embalm-
ers, the makers of linen used by them ; here lived the priests
who said prayers over each finger and toe of the deceased
and made the body ready for its everlasting home. On the
west bank of the river lay a city in itself very different from
the living one across the water. Funeral processions constantly
wended their way to this City of the Dead ; wails and lamenta-
tions often mingled in the air with songs of the priests at
their devotions. At sunset the gates admitting to this portion
of Thebes were locked and guarded against bands of robbers
who laid in wait for the riches enclosed in the tombs. The
tombs reached out to the rocky range of hills on the west and
were with difficulty protected.
Ancient Thebes extended some miles in each direction and
covered considerable territory. Little today remains to mark
its early splendor. The ruins at Karnak, the ancient mounds
of Luxor, topped by a squalid Arab village, some tombs opened,
some still hidden by the sands, are left. Much excavating
has been done in this so-called "Valley of the Kings." Strabo
and other early writers left some description of the original
city, but aside from such records, little is left today to indi-
cate the glories of that Thebes which was for hundreds of
years the pride of Egyptian kings.
Ramses.
Set! L was followed by his son, the famous Ramses H..
or Ramses the Great. Recent historians claim that this king
has been given undue prominence, and that he was outranked
by several Egyptian monarchs, including his own father.
THE STORY 01^ EGYPT, 75
While this is probably true, it would seem that this pharaoh
was as popular as any king who ruled in Egypt. He was
young and handsome when he ascended the throne, and
possessed a power of winning people to himself. That he was
filled with self-pride, no one can deny. He attached his name,
as we have seen, to every temple and monument where it was
possible, and scattered statues of himself broadcast. Yet the
only poem that suggests the epic in all Egyptian literature is
the one known as " Pentuar's Poem," in which his bravery
at the battle of Kadesh was sung.
Ramses had penetrated into Asia to bring the revolting
tribes back to submission. During this particular battle, he
became separated from his body guard and suddenly found
himself facing 2,500 charioteers alone. His personal bravery
on that occasion was splendid ; his soldiers pressed on to him
quickly, but his daring was seen by them and greatly admired.
The poem of Pentuar was written to celebrate the king's cour-
age in this crisis.
Pentuar's Poem.*
" Then the King stood forth, and, radiant with courage,
He looked like the Sun-god armed and eager for battle.
The noble steeds that bore him into the struggle —
* Victory to Thebes ' was the name of one, and the other
Was called ' contented Nura' — were foaled in the stables
Of him we call ' the elect,' ' the beloved of Amon,'
* Lord of truth,' the chosen vicar of Ra.
Up sprang the king and threw himself on the foe.
The swaying ranks of the contemptible Cheta.
He stood alone — alone, and no man with him.
As thus the king stood forth all eyes were upon him.
And soon he was enmeshed by men and horses.
And by the enemy's chariots, two thousand five hundred,
The foe behind hemmed him in, and enclosed him.
Dense the array of the contemptible Cheta,
Dense the swarm of warriors out of Arad,
Dense the Mysian host, the Pisidian legions.
^Records of the Past, ed. Dr. Burch. The author is unknown, but
the poem is known by the name of a scribe who once copied the pro-
ductiOQ.
76 THt wori,d's progress.
Every chariot carried three bold warriors.
All his foes, and all allied like brothers.
" 'Not a prince is with me, not a captain,
Not an archer, none to guide my horses I
Fled the riders ! fled my troops and horse —
By my side not one is now left standing.'
' Great father Amon, I have known thee well,
And can the father thus forget his son ?
Have I in anj deed forgotten Thee ?
Have I done aught without Thy high behest,
Or moved or staid against Thy sovereign will ?
Great am I — mighty are the Egyptian kings —
But in the sight of Thy commanding might.
Small as the chieftain of a wandering tribe.
Immortal Lord, crush Thou this unclean people ;
Break Thou their necks, annihilate the heathen.
And I — have I not brought Thee many victims.
And filled Thy temple with the captive folk ?
And for Thy presence built a dwelling place
That shall endure for countless years to come ?
Thy garners overflow with gifts from me.
" T offer Thee the world to swell Thy glory.
And thirty thousand mighty steers have shed
Their smoking blood on fragrant cedar piles.
Tall gateways, flag-decked masts, I raised to Thee,
And obelisks from Abu I have brought,
And built Thee temples of eternal stone.
For Thee my ships have brought across the sea
The tribute of the nations. This I did —
When were such things done in former time ?
For dark the fate of him who would rebel
Against Thee ; though Thy sway is just and mild.
My father, Amon — as an earthly son
His earthly father — so I call on Thee.
Look down from heaven on me, beset by foes.
By heathen foes, the folk that know Thee not.
The nations have combined agfainst Thy son ;
I stand alone — ^alone, and no man with me.
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 77
My foot and horse are fled, I called aloud
And no one heard — in vain I called to them.
And yet I say : the sheltering care of Amon
Is better succor than a million men,
Or than ten thousand knights, or than a thousand
Brothers and sons though gathered into one.
And yet I say : the bulwarks raised by men
However strong, compared to Thy great works
Are but vain shadows, and no human aid
Avails against the foe — but thy strong hand.
The counsel of Thy lips shall guide my way;
I have obeyed whenever Thou hast ruled ;
I call on Thee — and, with my fame. Thy glory ♦
Shall fill the world, from farthest east to west.'
" Yea, his cry rang forth even far as Hermonthis,
And Amon himself appeared at his call ; and gave him
His hand and shouted in triumph, saying to the pharaoh
' Help is at hand, O Rameses. I will uphold thee —
I thy father am he who now is thy succor.
Bearing thee in my hands. For stronger and readier
I than a hundred thousand mortal retainers ;
I am the Lord of victory loving valor.
I rejoice in the brave and give them good counsel.
And he whom I counsel certainly shall not miscarry.*
" Then like Menth, with his right he scattered the arrows,
And with his left he swung his deadly weapon.
Felling the foe — as his foes are felled by Baal.
The chariots were broken and the drivers scattered,
Then was the foe overthrown before his horses.
None found a hand to fight ; they could not shoot,
Nor dared they hurl the spear, but fled at his coming —
Headlong into the river."
Having quelled the disturbances incident to his accession —
for a change of rulers was generally the occasion for tribes
held in tribute to seek their freedom — Ramses was free to
devote the remainder of his reign, some forty years, to internal
improvements. New cities, embankments, fortresses, statues,
78 THE WORLDS PROGRESS.
obelisks and temples absorbed his untiring interest. He seems
to have been especially fond of grotto temples, — ^those hewn
out of rocky hills or mountain sides. Most beautiful of these
was the temple of Abu Simbel, guarded by four famous
statues of this king. They stand today much as they stood
three thousand years ago. One who has gazed upon the UU'
altering expression of these sentinels says of them : " The
artists who wrought the statues were . . . daunted by
no difficulties of scale. Giants themselves, they summoned these
giants from out the solid rock and endowed them with super-
human strength and beauty. They sought no quarried blocks
of syenite or granite for their work. They fashioned no models
of clay. They took a mountain and fell upon it like Titans
and hollowed and carved it as though it were a cherry stone ;
and left it for the feebler men of after ages to marvel at for-
ever. One great hall and fifteen spacious chambers they hewed
out from the heart of it, then smoothed the rugged precipice
toward the river, and cut four huge statues with their faces to
the sunrise, two to the right and two to the left of the door-
way, there to keep watch to the end of time.
" These tremendous warders sit sixty-six feet high, without
the platform under their feet. They measure across the chest
twenty-five feet and four inches. ... If they stood up,
they would tower to a height of at least eighty-three feet,
from the soles of their feet to the tops of their enormous
double-crowns.'"
To estimate the cost of all those tremendous undertakings
in buman life would be impossible. It is believed by some that
Ramses II. was the pharaoh of the oppression of the Hebrews.
However, during his administration they were well fed and
while their tasks were hard, they were not harder than those
of other workmen similarly employed. It was left for his son
and successor to make their lot so grievous that a deliverer
was raised up to lead them out of bondage.
Regard for human life, compassion for the lowly, and the
spirit of humanity were qualities almost unknown in antiquity.
The importance of the individual has only in modern times
come to be acknowledged. At the period of which we are
studying, there was no restraint upon the will of the sovereign.
» Edwards : A Thousand Miles Up the Nile, 262
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 79
To satisfy his ambition and to gratify his pride, hundreds of
thousands of slaves, captives, and impressed citizens were con-
tinually sacrificed. Some were driven to the mines : others
were harnessed to huge blocks of stone to draw them from
the quarry mountain to the building site ; some were set to
work in the brick fields, and over all were placed overseers
to goad the workers on, giving little rest or respite.
Regarding the Hebrews, it must be remembered that before
the Nineteenth dynasty, they prospered in the land of Egypt.
A new king who " knew not Joseph " looked with disfavor
upon these foreign people waxing strong w'ithin his borders.
Feeling that they might become a menace to the country, he
determined to exterminate them by dint of excessive work.
One of the " store-cities " built by them under these circum-
stances has been unearthed. It was surrounded by a wall
thirty feet thick, which enclosed about twelve acres. Besides
a temple, the enclosure contained subterranean cellars built of
sun-dried brick. The bricks themselves confirm the biblical
version of the story. While some are mixed with straw, as
was customary, others were mixed with leaves and reeds —
indicating that straw was no longer supplied. Still others
were made simply of sun-dried mud.
Ramses 11. so covered the land with his works and monu-
ments of his greatness, that his personality has stamped itself
everywhere.
It caught the attention of early writers and has ever since
impressed itself upon the traveller, so that this king has been
exalted to a prominent place in Egyptian history. Best known
of Egypt's kings, for that reason, possibly, he has been most
popular.
At length Merneptah ruled in his father's stead. Eew
qualities did he possess to awaken admiration. When his armies
were forced to face an invasion of African tribes, reinforced by
mercenary troops, he remained in camp while his soldiers won
victory for him. The god Ptah, so he explained, had com-
manded him to stay inside. This did not deter him from
taking full credit for the successes. Upon his monuments were
inscribed records similar to this : "These people were meditat-
ing to do evil to Egypt. They w^ere as grasshoppers. Lo, I
vanquished them ; I slaughtered them, making a spoil of their
country."
8o THE world's progress.
It is supposed that at this time Moses came to the relief of
Israel, and asked permission for his people to withdraw a few-
days into the desert to ofifer sacrifices to their God. This was
the cccasi(n for the king both to deny the request and tc
double the tasks meted out to the brickmakers by withholding
straw and requiring the same amount of work to be accom-
plished as before. Then, according to the Hebrew version,
grievous plagues were sent upon Egypt, and only when the
king's son, with the other first born, was stricken in the night,
did the monarch concede to the entreaties of his own people
and bid the Hebrews depart from his land. The story is fa-
miliar to all — how when he came to think of the six hundred
thousand valued bonds-people of which he was now bereft, he
dispatched the flower of Egyptian charioteers to prevent the
Hebrews crossing the Red Sea and bring them back to do his
bidding. To these despairing people to whom light seemed
about to dawn, the fact that they were able to cross over
while the Egyptian horses were ensnared and drowned,
seemed a miracle enacted for their deliverance. It has since
been noted that similar tidal action at this point has sometimes
repeated itself. To the Hebrews, believing firmly in the in-
spired mission of Moses, it was regarded later as an example
of how for the dutiful " all things work together for good."
Twentieth Dynasty.^
Ramses III. was the first important ruler of the Twentieth
dynasty. He and his immediate successors were able to hold
intact the vast empire won by earlier kings. We hear no more
of aggressive wars for conquest. However, the time had come
when Egypt did well when she maintained such territories as
belonged to her.
Men of Crete, other islanders and sea-faring people, made
common cause against the Asiatic shore early in this reign.
Ramses watched their progress until they attacked the Egyp-
tian province of Palestine. Not willing to lose this, the pharaoh
marched against the plundering bands and utterly routed them,
taking many captives. Three other campaigns were directed
by this king, but they were carried on to defend Egyptian bor-
ders and hold together tributary provinces.
Like his father, Ramses III. was a builder. Like him, too,
* 1200-1090 B. c
THE STORY OF EGYPT. 8l
he appropriated earlier temples and monuments for his own
fame and glory. He built a fleet on the Red Sea, continued the
profitable commercial intercourse with Punt, and caused a large
reservoir to be constructed in Palestine. Another thing he did,
which all histories have been careful to chronicle: he ordered
trees and shrubs to be systematically planted throughout the
realm. In a land where for months together the sun pours its
hot rays down on a defenseless people, he tried to bring rest
and cooling shade where both were sorely needed.
We have often noted the growing power of the priesthood
in Egypt, and have seen that a large amount of the booty and
tribute which flowed into the country from Asia found its way
to the temples. An inventory of the resources of the temples
during this reign has come down to us in a statement prepared
by Ramses III., known now as the Papyrus Harris. From
this it appears that the temples owned 107,000 slaves — or 2
per cent of the entire population ; they possessed 750,000 acres,
or over 15 per cent of all the arable land in the valley. Gome
500,000 head of cattle, over 80 vessels, 53 workshops and ship-
yards, brought an annual income; and 169 towns in Egypt
Kush and Syria were theirs. All this property in a land of less
than 10,000 square miles and possibly 6,000,000 people, was
exempt from taxation.
The lion's share of all this wealth fell to the temples sacred
to Amon. The priests of Amon had charge of it, and as time
went on, they came to be regarded as superior to other priestly
orders and their High Priest became the head of all priest-
hoods in the realm. Of all the temple estates, Amon owned
two-thirds. In slaves, this god owned seven times as many as
any other; of the cattle, more than four-fifths; of the ships, all
but five; of the workshops, forty-six of the fifty-three were
his. Regarding Amon's coffers, Ramses had inscribed : " I
have filled its treasury with the products of the land of Egypt :
gold, silver, every costly stone by the hundred thousand. Its
granary was overflowing with barley and wheat ; its lands, its
herds, their multitudes were like the sands of the shore. I taxed
for it the Southland as well as the Northland ; Nubia and Syria
came to it, bearing their impost."'
» Breasted: History of Egypt, 493; trans.
82 THE world's PROGREJS.
In showering all these princely gifts upon Amon, Ramses
was but following the example set by his forefathers. The
kings themselves held the priests somewhat in fear, believing
that they had influence with the gods and could indirectly in-
fluence not only their earthly prosperity but their future wel-
fare.
While this lavish wealth overflowed the coffers of the
temples, we find the workmen in the service of the government,
laboring in the City of the Dead — the Necropolis — having to
resort to strikes, or in older phraseology, " having to lie at
home," because their monthly rations were not forthcoming.
The revenue of the government had, apparently, become the
spoils for corrupt officials who sought to increase their personal
incomes at the expense of the public treisury. Repeatedly
starving laborers left their work and started with their families
to leave Thebes, whereupon part of their rations would be
given them and they would be urged to cont-'nue at their tasks !
Nor was this all. Records have come down to us of bands oi
robbers who made a profession of rifling tombs of the dead.
Worse still, cases for trial were frequently dismissed because
officials themselves and priests of lesser position were sharing
in the booty! Some of the Ramessides removed their an-
cestors from the original tombs and had all placed in a shaft
where guards could keep watch over them. It was next to
impossible to protect <^he wide-reaching City of tlie Dead, but it
was worse than useless to attempt such a thing when those sup-
posed to lend protetticn were themselves participating in the
robberies.
After the death of Ramses III., his descendants to the
number of ten succeeded him. Then the High Priest of Amon
snatched the power from Ramses XIIL, taking the title of
king as well as the authority which he already held. For some
time the kings had been practically subservient to him. For
almost a hunderd and fifty years priests ruled in Egypt.* Under
priestly rule the government was quite as corrupt as it had been
previously. Discontent on the part of the workmen, bold rob-
beries of tombs, were the order of the day. First Libyan, then
Ethiopian chiefs gained possession of the throne. The country
fell apart ; the days of Egypt's glory were gone.
From this time forward her political power was at an end.
^ * Twenty-first Dynasty, 1090-945 b. c
THE STORY 0"^ EGYPT. 83
To be sure, Ethiopian kings took on Egyptian civilization — as
a matter of fact, their country had long been Egyptianized.
They tried to rule as pharaohs before them had done, worship-
ping Egyptian gods and keeping temples in repair. To the
average citizen, life was no doubt much as it had been in former
periods. But the old ideas were steadily falling away. The
Assyrians invaded the country, and later, the Persians under
Cambyses conquered it. Now and then a native prince would
temporarily get control and repulse the Libyans and Ethio-
pians on the west and Asiatic peoples on the east. Such re-
actions and returns to the old order were short-lived, and like
the sudden glow of dying embers, bespoke an approaching end.
Foreign people and foreign influences pushed into the val-
ley. Especially did they come from Greece. We have seen
that rapid change and quick assimilation were alien to the
nature of the Egyptian. While the Greeks gained much by
this contact, their coming served but to make briefer the re-
maining years of Egyptian life. Greek learning was taught
and Greek religion spread into the valley. Finally with the
conquest of Alexander in 331 b. c, the prevailing element in
the land became Greek and so remained until Rome extended
her sway over all the ancient world.
When we think that each succeeding invasion was the oc-
casion for destruction ; when plunder and fire vied with each
other in despoiling the conquered land ; when later the few
temples which had withstood these experiences were robbed of
their contents, and obelisks, monuments and statues were scat-
tered among the nations of the earth, to satisfy personal grati-
fication, we can no longer wonder that so little remains of
that Egypt we have been studying.
After the period of the priest-kings, the history of Egypt
belongs to the history of Assyria, Babylonia, Greece and
Rome, and no longer concerns us in our attempt to become
acquainted with the " earliest nations."
We feel some way that the end of Egypt's political power
should have been more splendid than it was — more worthy of
her former dignity and strength, and almost regret that the
masses of her citizens had not met their final repulse in some
desperate rally to drive invaders from their borders But the
end had been long drawn out Generations of alien rule had
84
Thu wori,d*s progress.
accustomed the people to accept this as a natural condition.
Rawlinson puts it well : " As it was, Egypt sank ingloriously
at the last — her art, her literature, her national spirit decayed
and almost extinct — ^paying, by her early disappearance from
among the nations of the earth, the penalty of her extraordi-
narily precocious greatness."*
Such being a brief survey of her political achievements, we
turn now to the life and customs of her people.
* Rawlinson : Ancient Egypt, 402.
SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT
CHAPTER IX.
Introductory,
^i Mj/\ he social life of ancient peoples has for many
^^^t ^f greater interest than their political development.
j^M';^\| Before the days of Greece self-government was
^^iS^xi unknown, and the king embodied in himself the
■ government. Upon his personal character, his foresight
and statesmanship, the weal of the country depended.
For this reason, as we trace the political fortunes of one nation
and another in antiquity, we find that the story consists largely
of the doings of the monarch. When kings were strong and
ambitious, wide activities characterized their reigns; when
they were weak, unprincipled and selfish, their periods were
less brilliant. In any case, one feels how powerless were the
masses — how utterly at the will of the sovereign. To be sure,
even in antiquity, it ill behooved a ruler to disregard his
subjects altogether, but conditions had to be extreme before
they would assert themselves against him.
Apart from a nation's political life, however, there is al-
ways a greater life — the life of the people, regardless of their
political relations. One never exists without the other, and
one is influenced by the other; but the social body includes
each and every one, whether of low or high estate, while the
political body may include but a portion of a nation's people,
^gain, in spite of bad government, the selfishness of kings,
even in spite of invasions of the enemy, the daily life of the
great majority of early people varied but little. They pro-
cured food and clothing, cared for their children, worked at
their various callings, as civilized beings have done in all ages.
Certain peculiar customs are to be found among each nation,
and it is these very peculiarities, probably, that relieves what
might otherwise become a monotonous repetition.
85
86 THS world's progress.
We cannot too often recall that the recorded history of
ancient Egypt extended over three thousand years. The man-
ner of life, dress, customs, etc., changed considerably in that
long period, and just as we divide the social life of England
into various epochs — such as social conditions under Saxon
kings, during Norman rule, in Elizabethan years, etc. — so, for
any protracted investigation of social Egypt, we would find it
necessary to make several divisions of the subject.
The greatest source of knowledge for Egyptian social life
is of course the tombs. From their contents and from the
pictures that adorn their walls much has been ascertained. To
be sure, many details are yet lacking, and Egyptologists seek
still for answers to unanswered queries. Many recovered re-
mains have not yet been classified, and rolls of papyri lie
still untranslated, so undoubtedly the future will make many
contributions to what has already been worked out. Never-
theless, even now many aspects of the life of the old Nile-
dwellers have been reconstructed with considerable degree of
certainty. These recent conclusions have proven the ancient
Egyptian to have been quite a different creature from what
he was long supposed. Until late years it was believed that he
was a solemn, serious individual, overwhelmed with an ever-
present thought of death, for which many of his acts in life
prepared him. This idea was mistaken. The religion of
the ancient Egyptian led him into many curious ways, beyond
a doubt, but he was withal a contented person who found
some humor in life. The happenings of his earthly career were
as potent to him as ours are to us. The study of history
should do one thing for us at least : it should teach us to find
strong similarities between the people we see around us today
and those of whom we read and study in antiquity. The
normal human being has in all ages been governed by certain
controlling interests, passions and desires, has pulsed with the
vigor of life and its manifold interests — as we do now and as
the Egyptian did, five thousand years ago.
Houses.
In strong contrast with the solid, substantial tombs and
temples were the private dwellings. No need was felt to make
these enduring. Rather, they were constructed in such a way
SOCIAI, UFE IN EGYPT. 87
as to allow free circulation of air and to preserve coolness.
The walls were thin, being made of stucco, mud brick, or wood.
The outside of the house was decorated in gay colors, and
was hung with brightly tinted carpets or mattings. Similar
coverings adorned the inner walls.
Many pictures of ancient Egyptian houses have been found
in tomb pictures. It is apparent that the well-to-do citizen de-
sired seclusion for his home. An outer wall usually surrounded
the house and out buildings.' The general plan of houses for
people of comfortable means was this: a gateway, often of
cedar, gave entrance into a court. The gate was kept locked,
save when the keeper opened it to allow visitors to enter or
depart. Crossing the court — of varying size — one entered a
vestibule, guarded by a porter. This vestibule led directly to
the dining hall, the largest and most important room in the
house. Sleeping apartments for the family were reached
through a second vestibule and the kitchen, store-rooms, and
servants' apartments, though joined on one side, were sep-
arated from the main portion of the house by an inner court.
Often the houses were two stories in height. Generally a
stairway led to the roof, which was used for many purposes
when the heat of the sun was passed.
The wealthy required many buildings. One would be set
aside for the women ; another contained reception halls for
distinguished guests; a third, store-rooms and supplies; and
besides these there might be several stables and separate
quarters for slaves and servants. Service was cheap and
slaves plentiful, so people of even moderate means had nu-
merous assistants.
The elaborate estate of the wealthy was exceeded by the
magnificence of the pharaoh, who frequently constructed his
own city, as it was called. Here the king might have plenty
of land and surround himself with as many buildings as he
chose, enclosing the whole by a wall. In bitter contrast to
this royal splendor was the squalor of the poor, whose shelter
was a tiny hut built of sun-dried mud.
For those whose incomes permitted, the garden was the
favorite spot. This we would naturally expect in a country
where out of door life is interrupted only in the middle of the
day by the intense heat. In the garden, trees, shrubs, and many
88 THE world's progress.
kinds of flowers were planted. Its size depended upon the
prosperity of the owner. Sometimes the court, however tiny,
provided all the garden plot he possessed ; sometimes extensive
grounds included flower-gardens, date orchards, and sycamore
groves, while summer houses and artificial ponds were scat-
tered over wide areas. Small wonder was it that the " pious
Egyptian hoped his soul, as its supreme felicity, would re-
turn to sit under the trees he had planted, by the side of the
ponds he had dug, there to enjoy the refreshing breeze from
the north."
The Egyptians were passionately fond of flowers. They
grew them in their gardens, filled their houses with the blos-
soms, used them lavishly at their feasts and carved them on
their tombs and in their temples. They sought ever to increase
their varieties, originally few, and we have seen that the
kings often prized new specimens found in other lands above
their tribute.
" Everywhere on the monuments we meet with flowers ;
bouquets of flowers are presented to the gods; the coffins are
covered with wreaths of flowers; flowers form the decoration
of the houses, and all the capitals of the pillars are painted in
imitation of their colored petals. The Egyptian also loved
shady trees. He not only prayed that the * Nile should bestow
every flowering plant in their season ' upon his departed soul,
but also that his soul might sit * on the boughs of the trees
that he had planted, and enjoy the cool air in the shade of his
sycamore. ' The arable fields, the shadeless woods of palms,
the bare mud soil, scarcely provided the scenery which he
most admired ; he therefore tried to supply the want by land-
scape gardening. In the oldest periods there were parks
and gardens ; and the gentleman of ancient Egypt talked with
pride of his shady trees, his sweet-smelling plants, and his
cool tanks. All the sentiments with which we regard the
woods and meadows of nature, the Egyptian felt towards his
well kept garden; to him it was the dwelling place of love,
and his trees were the confidants of lovers.
" On the * festival day of the garden,' that is on the day
when the garden was in full bloom, the wild fig-tree calls to
the maiden to come into the shade of the fig leaves as a
trysting place. : .
SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT. 89
" The little Sycamore,
Which she planted with her hand
She begins to speak,
And her (words are as) drops of honey.
She is charming, her bower is green.
Greener than the (papyrus).
She is laden with fruit,
Redder than the ruby,
The color of her leaves is as glass.
Her stem is as the color of the opal. . . »
It is cool in her shadow.
She sends her letter by a little maiden.
The daughter of her chief gardener
She makes her haste to her beloved :
Come and linger in the (garden) . . .
The servants who belong to thee
Come with the dinner things ;
They are bringing beer of every (kind).
With all manner of bread,
Flowers of yesterday and of today.
And all kinds of refreshing fruit.
Come, spend this festival day
And tomorrow and the day after tomorrow
Sitting in my shadow.
Thy companion sits at thy right hand.
Thou dost make him drink,
And then thou dost follow what he says. . . .
I am of a silent nature
And I do not tell what I see
I do not chatter."*
Having attractive grounds as a setting, the houses of the
wealthy Egyptians were also attractive indoors. The dining
room was the important room of the house. Guests generally
sat on stools when dining. When ladies gathered for a banquet,
they frequently sat on costly rugs spread upon the floor.
Servants or slaves served those assembled from a large table
loaded with tempting viands.
The Egyptian seems no longer far away and mummy-like
> Erman : Life in Ancient Egypt, 193.
go THE wori^d's progress.
when we learn that he was fond of good things to eat. Roast
goose was a favorite dish; bread and beer were constantly in
demand, quite as they are in Germany today. In naming over
the dishes he hoped to supply his departed, in a tomb we may
read : five kinds of birds, sixteen kinds of bread and cake, six
varieties of wine, and eleven different fruits. The bread,
molded into fancy shapes, was made of barley and wheat.
Grapes were generally grown, and fig trees too. Tame
monkeys were trained to go into the high branches of the fig
trees and throw down the fruit.
Many specimens of ancient household furniture have been
found in Egyptian tombs, such as chairs, couches, tables and
bedsteads. In the sleeping apartments, high couches were
reached by steps. Wooden headrests took the place of pillows.
These were used in order that the wigs and elaborate head
dresses might not be disturbed while the wearers slept.
The student who would make an exhaustive study of the
Egyptian house and its contents must go to the museums where
discovered articles have been preserved, or at least to the de-
tailed descriptions of these given by Maspero and other
Egyptologists. We could not well leave a consideration of the
subject however, without giving brief attention to the dwellings
of the poor, who in every age and country have made up a
large part of the population.
The fellah of today lives much as did the peasant of an-
tiquity. His dwelling was a hut built of mud and roofed
with palm leaves. While the poorest had but one room,
those who were more industrious, perhaps, might have two or
three. Once or twice in a century, rain would fall. Then
these huts would dissolve and flow away. When the storm
ceased, all the family would set to work, level off the spot and
construct a new dwelling from sun-dried mud, which after
being exposed to the heat of a few days, would be as good as
ever. This leveling of huts, whether caused by storms, or
because it was easier to build a new house than cleanse the
old one, has elevated the land in many parts of Egypt. Fre-
quently it is the case that peasants have dwelt so long on the
sites of buried cities, that the explorer who today vvould reach
the original settlement must tunnel down through many layers
of sun-dried mud, once the dwellings of the poor.
sociai, life in egypt. 9i
Family Life.
It is frequently said that the test of a nation's civilization
is the position accorded to woman. Applying this test to Egypt,
her civilization would rank well with nations of modern times
as well as with those contemporaneous with her. From the
earliest times of which we have record, Egyptian women
were the companions and trusted counsellors of their husbands.
During the New Empire it was the boast of one of the Rames-
sides that any woman might go alone and unveiled as far in
any direction as she wished, confident that she would not be
accosted nor disturbed.
Two customs prevailed in ancient Egypt that are contrary
to the moral standards of our day: one was the practice of a
brother marrying his sister; the second, a husband having
more than one wife. Early peoples did not regard these prac-
tices in the light of modern opinion. The Hebrews, for
example, frequently took two or more wives, and the same
habit obtained among the Babylonians and Assyrians. Among
pastoral tribes of the present day this custom survives. In all
cases, one woman was regarded as the legitimate wife, and her
children were heirs to their father's estate, while children by
his other wives might or might not be recognized by the
father as his heirs, according to his pleasure. As a rule, only
the well-to-do Egyptian could afford the luxury of two wives,
so that polygamy was not common among the lower classes.
There seems to have been little friction in the Egyptian house-
hold between the several wives. Stories have come down to
us of women who cared enough for other wives of their
husbands to name children for them. Certain marks of honor
were the right of the first wife and were conceded as a matter
of course.
The marriage of those close of kin was quite usual. The
word sister in Egypt came to be used interchangeably for wife
or sister. In this land it appears to have frequently resulted
that a boy and girl, brought up in the same family, having
similar ideas and interests, married and lived happily together
in their married life.
Multifarious were the duties of a wife of the middle class.
She cared for the family, spun and wove, sent the little ones
to school and took them a lunch at mid-day. She drew water
92 th^ world's progress.
at the nearest pool, ground corn into meal and made the meal
into cakes; she drove the cattle to pasture and collected the
fuel. What did not this mother do? It is little wonder that
from lack of care and nourishment, large numbers of children
died before they became ten years of age. Those who lived
were indeed the survival of the fittest, and aside from a disease
of the eye — brought on by the glaring sand and burning sun —
they were generally healthy and equal to any hardship.
Marrying young, women were often grandmothers at thirty.
Although they faded early, they did not suffer in their position
in the family on that account. Great respect was shown them
while they lived, and after their death they were worshipped —
for the Egyptian always worshipped his ancestors. Believing
that the soul lived on, it might work harm for the surviving
relatives and friends unless appeased with marked considera-
tion. This desire to escape possible harm by satisfying the
departed appears to have been the strong motive inducing
ancient peoples to worship the dead.
The children were left with the mother until almost four
years of age. Dolls and other toys found buried in the tombs
with little ones show that they, in those far away times, were
quite like children who have lived since. When four, they were
sent to an elementary school. If at ten the son had evinced
any special ability that would justify educating him, he was
put into a school maintained by the priests. Here he was
trained for a scribe unless his early promise was borne out
by rapid progress, in which case he was educated for the
priesthood. If by the age of ten he had given no special
evidence of ability, he was taught a trade.
The old idea that caste was strongly marked in Egypt is
not only misleading but untrue. Class distinctions were closely
drawn in Egypt, as they are today, even in America. The
average child born in the slums of a city seldom comes to
importance. The son of a day laborer rarely marries into the
wealthy or so-called "old families." The reason for this is
not so much that there is objection in America to the humblest
born rising to any height, but that the opportunities for progress
to one born into such surroundings are few. It was somewhat
similar in Egypt. Chances for rapid advance were by no
means as favorable then as now, but nevertheless, there are
Tourists Scaling the Great Pyramid.
SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT. 93
many cases on record where men attained high official position
in spite of great social disadvantages.
The affection of the Egyptians for their children was almost
universal. Large families were desired, even by those in
moderate circumstances. Indeed it was necessary that families
be perpetuated, for thus alone would family tombs be kept up
and respect be shown those who had departed. Among all
people who worship ancestors, children are especially desired
and to be bereft of them is the greatest hardship and affliction.
In spite of all that has been said of the respect paid to
women, the happy domestic relations in Egypt and the affection
for children, it is doubtful whether or not there was much
home life as we today understand the phrase. The importance
of the individual is a modern conception. The will of the
king was paramount in Egypt and all citizens were first of
all subservient to his wishes. Less security, less freedom in
pursuing one's own course probably resulted in brief periods
of family unity. Surely such must have been the result of
early marriages which took children from their parents at a
tender age.
Dress.
Suppose for a moment that some unforseen catastrophe
should wipe out the inhabitants of England, and future gen-
erations attempted to reconstruct their history, from the age
of King Arthur and his knights to the peaceful days of Edward
the Seventh. After working out an outline of their political
development, suppose it should be asked, But how did these peo-
ple dress? Think of the variety of costumes that have been
popular since the Round Table days ! Who could describe
them all ? The task would be disheartening indeed. And yet,
far more years sped over Egypt than England has yet known.
Living in a warm country, the Egyptian required simpler
•raiment than the Englishman. In early times a short, scant
skirt was worn by both men and women — the children were
generally not clothed at all. This skirt, which formed the
foundation of all the later, more elaborate dress, changed in
style from one age to another. Sometimes it was scantier
than at other times and it varied in length. During the Sixth
dynasty, either by means of pressing, or by some device, the
1—8
94 THiv world's progress.
front of the skirt was made to assume a stiff, triangular appear-
ance. As pictured on the tombs, it looks like a three-cornered
apron. In the Old Empire, the great lords threw a panther
skin across their shoulders, when, as Erman expresses it, " they
wished to appear in full dress."
In the Middle Empire people of high position wore two
skirts, the under one short and of heavy linen ; the outer skirt
so sheer that the contour of the body was quite visible.
By the Eighteenth dynasty it had become customary to
clothe the upper portion of the body. Even now the arms
were left free. The king appeared occasionally hi a mantle
and the nobles also donned mantles for festival days.
Working people always clothed in the simplest fashion. All
garments were frequently discarded in the field, as they impeded
rapid movement. The supersensitive modesty of our day
which cries out against a low bodice or lace hose, even raises
objection at undraped marble statues, had no part in the thought
of these simple-hearted, pure-minded people ; yet they showed
a fitting sense of decorum and dignity.
It was the men in Egypt who delighted in finery and showy
costumes, while the dress of the women was plainer and re-
mained almost wholly unaltered for centuries together. Their
usual garment during the later periods was a close fitting
gown reaching from under the arms to the ankles, and mistress
and maid were dressed much alike. In the New Empire a cloak
was added, but it and the gown beneath were of sheerest linen
procurable. As time went on, garments of both men and
women were elaborately embroidered.
The ancient Egyptian desired to preserve absolute cleanli-
ness. Scenes characteristic of washing day have been pictured
on many a tomb. The chief washer was assisted by others
who beat the clothes, wrung them out, bleached and dried them.
It was the desire to be clean which led these people to shave
their heads and beards. Wigs of curled wool and others of
long hair are constantly seen in the old pictures, although it
sometimes appears that these covered heads already crowned
by a natural growth. While they shaved off the beard as
something unclean, the Egyptians still shared in the idea com-
mon to oriental peoples ':hat a beard gives added dignity,
hence the king and men of rank wore artificial beards on state
SOCIAL UFE IN EGYPT.
95
occasions. Even Queen Hatshepsut assumed one when she
wished to appear regal.
Sandals and foot gear were not popular at any time, al-
though men of the higher classes wore them when they walked
abroad. Men and women alike donned necklaces and bracelets,
while women wore anklets also. Earrings were introduced by
foreigners and rings seem to have been confined to seal rings.
Walking sticks were carried as badges of honor and each style
of stick indicated a degree of social rank.
The Egyptians painted their faces, rouged their lips, black-
ened their eyes, and oiled their hair and bodies. At a feast a
slave would bring a ball soaked in oil for each guest, place
it on his head, in order that the oil might gently percolate
through the hair of the banqueter during the meal. The dead
were provided with many kinds of oil, perfumes, and rouges
for use of the double, or ka.
Probably many allowed their hair to grow long, for we
find physicians taxed to their utmost to supply concoctions
which would produce heavy growths of hair, strengthen it
and prevent it from turning grey. All these remedies are
found in old papyri :
To prevent the hair turning grey : " The blood of a black
calf, cooked in oil — a salve."
Or this : " Two parts of bloods, horn of a black cow, warm
it up for a salve."
When the hair fell out: "Take fat of the lion, of the
hippopotamus, the crocodile, the cat, the snake, and the ibex."
To strengthen the hair : " Anoint it with the tooth of a
donkey crushed in honey."
Or try this: " Boil the hoof of a donkey in oil together
with a dog's foot, and some date kernels."
VIEW OF MANSION, PROM THE TOMB OF ANNA,
EIGHTEENTH DYNASTY.
96 TH^ WORU)'S PROGRESS.
CHAPTER X.
Sports and Recreations.
The pastimes and diversions of any people fall easily in
two divisions: those which are adapted to the open air, and
those enjoyed indoors. The popular outdoor sports among
the Egyptians were hunting, fishing and boating, while the
banquet with its attendant dancing and music, helped them
to pass those hours when Amon, god of the sun, concealed,
reigned over all.
The wealthy Egyptian liked to take his wife or family in
his light boat and wander at will among the reeds and marshy
plants abounding in the little streams and lakes left still un-
drained. It was fine sport to flit in and out among the tall
papyrus, rouse a flock of birds and bring some of them down
with the boomerang. Fishes were plentiful in the streams,
and the sportsman chose to get them with a two-pointed spear.
If he became expert, he could spear two at once — one on either
point. To be sure, the game dealers, requiring large numbers
of fish and fowl, caught both in a net. Only the noble or the
well-to-do had time to indulge in hunting and fishing for mere
diversion. In the tomb pictures, gentlemen are shown seated
in their gardens, on costly rugs, it may be, leisurely spearing
fish in their own artificial ponds. This was too simple a
process for any but the most indolent, and did not appeal
to the true sportsman who loved the natural streams.
Great was the attraction of these marshy lakes. " Much of
the country formerly covered by marshes and tropical forests
was already arable land. At the same time old river beds re-
mained; stretches of marsh and half-stagnant water, over-
grown as of old with papyrus reeds, offered shelter to the
hippopotamus, the crocodile and to numberless water-birds.
This was the happy hunting ground of the great lords of ancient
Egypt, the oft-mentioned * backwaters,' the * bird tanks of
pleasure.' They played the same part in Egyptian life as the
forest in German folk lore; the greatest delight perhaps that
an Egyptian knew was to row in a light boat between the
SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT. 97
beautiful waving tufts of the papyrus reeds, to pick the lotus
flo\vers, to start the wild birds and then knock them over with
the throw-stick, to spear the great fish of the Nile and even
the hippopotamus, with the harpoon. Pictures of all periods
exist representing these expeditions, and we have but to glance
at them in order to realize how much the Egyptians loved
these wild districts, and how much poetry they found in them.'"
Danger mingled with sport in capturing the larger game —
the hippopotamus and crocodile. Pictures of crocodile hunts
have not been found. Probably they were not painted, because
in certain parts of Egypt these animals were held sacred to
some god, and even those who did not share this belief might
not have cared to record the killing of them in the tomb. No
such feeling existed concerning the hippopotamus and he who
was successful in securing one seldom failed to have the hunt
pictured in his tomb. You will remember that in ancient Egypt,
each person built his own tomb during his life time, and so
decided for himself for what he was to be remembered.
The deserts and mountains on either side offered game to
the hunter. Gazelles, antelopes, foxes, hares, and other small
animals, such as rabbits, abounded. Did one crave greater
adventure, he might follow the leopard and the lion. It was
quite the custom for the wealthy man, who followed the chase
for sport, to collect wild animals and add them to the menagerie
usually found on the large estates. Here were elephants and
baboons from Asia, giraffes from the upper Nile, lions, leopards,
hyenas and gazelles from the deserts. Some became quite
tame and were taught tricks. Lions were favorite pets, and
kings often took them along on their campaigns. Monkeys
were found in almost every household ; and since hunting was
so popular, various kmds of hounds were more numerous than
other species of dogs.
In addition to the small canoe in which he hunted water
birds, the nobleman usually had a large, square-sailed, double-
masted boat in which he would take his family and friends for
an evening sail down the river. His musicians would accom-
pany him, and dispense sweet strains on their harps and lutes,
in harmony with the quiet waters.
Feasting was popular alike with men and women. Music
'Erman: Life in Ancient Egypt, 235.
98 THE world's progress.
and dancing were invariably furnished as means of enter-
tainment. Many pictures of the banquet remain. Sometimes
ladies in elaborate toilettes are shown, partaking of all sorts
of dainties, while dancing girls move gracefully before them,
beating time to the music which accompanied them. Sometimes
the dances were intricate ; one of them pictured in a tomb seems
to represent papyrus reeds, swaying in the wind. Others were
yet more elaborate
Music was popular among all classes. Flutes, lutes and
harps are shown in the tomb pictures. Singing often accom-
panies the harp. Among the superintendents of " all the most
beautiful pleasures of the king " were superintendents of sing-
ing. Thus it seems royalt}% at least, did not trust to inspira-
tion for entertainment, but prudently had it arranged and
rehearsed in advance. At Memphis there is said to have been
a school where music was taught to girls.
Some games of chance were popular in Egypt. Checkers
was known and a picture remains wherein Ramses II. is
playing the game with his daughter.
It remains to speak of certain other customs of the feast.
The ladies would come together to make their toilets, rouging
their lips, blackening their eyes, offering one another their
flowers to smell, and examining each other's jewelry.
" The serving boys and girls go round, offering ointment,
wreaths, perfumes, and bowls of wine. They challenge the
guests at the same time to ' celebrate the joyful day ' by the
enjoyment of the pleasure of the present moment; the singers
also continually repeat the same as the refrain to their song.
They sing to the guests as they quaff the wine :
'' Celebrate the joyful day !
Let sweet odours and oils be placed for thy nostrils.
Wreaths of lotus flowers for the limbs
And for the bosom of thy sister, dwelling in thy heart
Sitting beside thee.
Let song and music be made before thee.
Cast behind thee all cares and mind thee of pleasure,
Till cometh the day when we drew towards the land
That loveth silence.'
SOCIAL LIFE IX EG^-PT.
99
or:
' Put myrrh on thy head, array thyself in fine linen.
Anointing thyself with the true wonders of God.
Adorn thyself ^^'ith all the beauty thou cansU
With a beaming face celebrate the joyful day and rest not
therein
For no one can take away his goods with him,
Yea, no one returns again, who has gone hence.' " *
The men banqueted alone. Dancing and music diverted
them during the feast. It was customary to pass the image
of a mummy around at the feast, while words similar to these
were repeated : " Look upon this and know, even as it is, so
shalt thou be — for all must die." This in no way dampened
the pleasures of the night; rather, each sought to enjoy to its
fullest capacity the fleeting hours.
"Ennao • Life in Andent Egypt, 255.
PACVDE OF A HOUSE TOWARD THE STSEZX.
SECOND THEBAN VaUOSL
lOO THE world's progress.
CHAPTER XI.
Agriculture and Cattle Raising.
Owing to the inexhaustible fertility of the Nile valley, fine
crops were always forthcoming on the land reached by the
annual overflow. The rich mud deposited by the flood left the
productive qualities of the soil restored, and it was never
necessary to leave the fields lie fallow. However, the ground
had not only to be merely reached by the river waters, but to be
saturated, for rain seldom fell and whatever humidity was sup-
plied the growing vegetation, came from the overflow. A
system of irrigation brought the water in trenches as near each
farm as possible. From these trenches, thousands of men and
boys, employed throughout the country, lifted water in buckets
to the higher land, that all the crops might receive sufficient
moisture.
As soon as the river receded, all the valley was astir with
busy people, getting the ground ready for the grain and other
seed. Implements of the farm were crude indeed, and crude
they are today. A high official in recent times had a quantity
of agricultural implements, such as are used by the most
progressive farmers in America, imported into Egypt and
endeavored to encourage the peasants to use them. Not they.
What had served the needs of seven thousand years in their
valley was deemed sufficient for them, and after some time,
the entire outfit had to be sold for old iron.
Pictures in tombs depict many scenes connected with grain
production — from the plowing of the soil to the storing of
the grain into granaries. From these pictures we are able
to outline the daily life of the peasant.
Their plows were crude, wooden implements, which at
best did little more than scratch over the soil. Coarse clods
of earth had to be broken with a sort of wooden hoe. Then
the farmer scattered seed over the mellow ground, driving
flocks of sheep across the fields to tread it in. Aside from
the matter of irrigation, the crops needed little attention until
the time for harvest Then the grain was cut by a sickle,
SOCIAL U^fi INT EGYPT. lOI
loaded on to donkeys and taken to the threshing-floor, located
near the village. Here in early times it was trodden out by
donkeys, driven back and forth over it. Later oxen were in
greater favor for threshing. The grain was freed from chaff
by throwing it up into the air rapidly. The grain fell straight
down, while the chaff was blown forward. Now it was ready
for the " scribes of the granary," who measured it and super-
vised it while being stored safely away. Sometimes the boats
of a nobleman would ply back and forth for weeks together,
bringing his heavy yield of millet and barley to his granaries.
One word about the " corn " of Egypt. The Indian corn
which we call corn today is a native American product, and
was unknown to antiquity. Corn has been used as a common
name for all grain. Wheat, barley and millet were the leading
grains of Eg>'pt.
Taxes were paid in kind — in produce; so naturally, large
quantities of grain were poured yearly into the coffers of the
government. This was stored against times of need which
occasionally fell upon Egypt. It was in one of these years
when a famine swept over the east that Joseph's brothers came
down into the valley to buy grain from government granaries.
Little is known of the vegetables grown in antiquity.
Probably many of those common today were raised. Melons
were extensively grown ; onions and cucumbers were probably
known and the grape vine was extensively cultivated.
Cattle raising was carried to some perfection The Egyp-
tians understood well the secrets of high breeding and produced
especially fine specimens of cows and oxen. Being fond of
all animals, they were partial to the ox, symbolic of great
strength, and to the cow. sacred to Isis. As the lion, with
its strength, has appealed to many people, so the ox was a
favorite with the dwellers on the Nile.
The herders made up a class by themselves. In the sum-
mer they drove the cattle up north, into the marshes, where
pasture was good. The average Egyptian looked upon these
men with deepest disgust, for they let their hair grow, and
wore beards. They lived in portable reed huts. Their lives
were quite primitive and they had a general unkempt appear-
ance. They dressed very little, and their efforts to copy the
Egyptian skirt in their stiff matting, afforded the townsman
102 th^ world'vS progress.
much amusement. They spent their idle time weaving papyrus
reeds into mats, and wove boats from the same useful plant.
When the fall came, they returned with their herds from
the northern marshes. When they reached home, officials came
to inspect the flocks. They noted the increase of the stock,
all losses and other matters of interest to the owners. Records
show that single proprietors sometimes owned as many as
1,300 cows, in addition to other cattle.
Large flocks of sheep were kept, and goats were plentiful.
Few pictures of pigs are to be seen, and those only in the
New Empire period. The pig was objected to on religious
grounds, as unclean.
Their fondness for animals led the Egyptians to receive
as many wild animals as possible into their flocks. These were
fattened with the cattle. Mention is made of the ibex and
antelope being especially valued when they had been fed for
awhile with the herds.
Birds were apparently not extensively domesticated. This
was not necessary, for the bird-catchers could find any number
of ducks and geese in the marshes, fatten them for a time,
and supply them without the trouble of raising them. The
goose was the favorite bird. Roast goose was a favorite dish
and was offered as a delicacy to the gods. Pictures even show
geese kept as pets, in the place of dogs or monkeys.
While the whole civilization of Egypt was based on its
agriculture and its cattle raising, the farmer and herder had
no social standing. The tiller of the soil was regarded as an
overworked creature who never became prosperous. The land
was generally owned by great noblemen of wealth, who them-
selves received the profit.
" The following sad sketch of the lot of the harvestmen
was written by the compiler of a didactic letter, of which many
copies are extant, and implies not only a personal opinion, but
the general view of this matter : * The worm has taken half
of the food, the hippopotamus the other half ; there were many
mice in the fields, the locusts have come down and the cattle
have eaten, and the sparrows have stolen. Poor miserable
agriculturist! What was left on the threshing floor thieves
made away with. . . . Then the scribe lands on the bank
to receive the harvest, his followers carry sticks and the
SOCIAI. LIFE IN EGYPT. 103
negroes carry palm rods. They say : * Give up the corn ' — and
there is none there. Then they beat him as he Hes stretched
out and bound to the ground, they throw him into the canal
and he sinks down, head under water. . . . This is, of
course, an exaggerated picture, which is purposely overdrawn
by the writer, in order to emphasize the striking contrast that
he draws in his eulogy of the profession of scribe ; in its main
features, however, it gives us a very true idea, for the lot of
the ancient peasant very much resembled that of the modern
fellah. The latter labours and toils without enjoying the re-
sults of his own work. He earns a scanty subsistence, and,
notwithstanding all his industry, he gains no great renown
amongst his countrymen of the towns: the best they can say
of him is, that he is vorthv to be compared with his own
cattle.'"
Artisans and Their Crafts.
Countries today can easily import such articles of manu-
facture as are not produced within their own boundaries. A
single household may possess silk made in India, porcelain
from China, curtains and laces from Belgium, cutlery from
England, and some musical instruments made in Germany. All
this was different in antiquity. Egypt long remained isolated.
She developed a higher civilization than her neighbors, and
what her people required had to be produced for the most part
within her borders. It followed naturally that a wide variety
of trades and crafts grew up in the limited valley of the Nile.
To be sure, during her empire period many lands sent their
choicest products as tribute, yet even then, Egyptians held
first place in certain arts and crafts.
There was little native wood in the valley. When the
conquests of Thutmose I. established relations with Syria,
woods were imported to some extent. Mummies have been
found encased in the rare cedars of Lebanon. Generally
speaking, however, substitutes had to be found for timber.
Light boats were made from reeds, and for the making of
larger ones, boatmakers became expert in joining together
small pieces of wood, thus forming large boards, strong enough
to bear severe strains. For some purposes, cartonage was sub-
Erman: Life in Ancient Egypt, 4i5.
104 th^ world's progress.
stituted. This was composed of several layers of coarse linen
glued together. It was used extensively for the manufacture
of coffins. In veneering rare woods upon less costly founda-
tions, the Egyptians far surpassed any modern efforts. Wood
carvers reached a high degree of skill in fashioning little
statuettes and images from wood, also in carving, with ex-
quisite detail, tiny wooden amulets and ornaments. Handles
of knives sometimes display the dexterity of the wood carvers.
Even greater, perhaps, was their success in metal work.
Bronze was commonly used for articles of every day use.
Iron was known and was reserved more especially for weapons
of warfare and for some kinds of knives. For a time, silver
was more highly valued than gold, being more rare. Later
it was found in greater quantities, and took rank with gold,
or had even less value. Statues of the gods were made com-
monly in bronze, although many were fashioned from gold.
The goldsmith was a person of good social standing. He
made statues of the gods to adorn the temples and he cut and
set jewels for royalty. The number of precious stones was
quite extensive in Egypt. Diamonds, rubies and sapphires
were seemingly unknown, but amethysts, emeralds, garnets,
agates, jasper and lapis lazuli were available. The Egyptians,
both men and women, were very fond of personal adornments,
and jewelry was worn in profusion by the -wealthy and to
some extent by all. Amber, turquoise, coral and pearls were
popular. Every man wore a seal ring — and this not merely
as an ornament. Letters and documents were never signed in
these ages — rather, one affixed his seal. The noble wore a
costly ring; the citizen of humble position, one of slight value,
but every one who expected to transact any business or carry
on any correspondence wore a seal ring of some kind. Women,
to the same extent, wore necklaces. Most elaborate ones
have been discovered in the tombs of royalty; very simple
ones adorned the necks of the humbler women, yet none was
so poor as to lack a necklace altogether. Bracelets, anklets,
hair combs and ornaments, amulets, chains, and scarabs were
greatly in demand, and the goldsmiths of ancient Egypt at-
tained great originality, skill and perfection in his art. So
constant being the demand for inexpensive jewelry, remark-
able skill was reached in imitating precious stones in glass.
SOCIAL UFE IN EGYPT. IO5
Indeed, it is difficult for experts today to determine in some
cases whether the stone be real or imitated.
In glass work, the Egyptians preferred colored glass to
the clear. Whatever glass utensils remain are invariably col-
ored. Blue was a favorite color. Thin layers of glass were
used sometimes to decorate coffins. Blown glass was not
made in early times, statements to the contrary notwithstand-
ing. Pictures once supposed to represent glass blowers at
work are now understood to depict one stage of metal working.
Pottery was never brought to any high mark by the Nile
dwellers. Clay utensils were used for only the most ordinary
purposes, and the jars, bowls, and vases which remain give
evidence of poor material having been used in the first place,
indifferent labor in the next place, poor fire and little skill in
ornamentation. These indifferent results were satisfactory
enough for the commonest uses and for anything more, some-
thing in metal appears to have been demanded.
Hunting being a favorite pastime, and cattle raising car-
ried on to such a wide extent, Egypt became rich in skins.
The skins of rarer animals were never shorn of the natural
hair. This was dressed and used for coverings of couches
and chairs — for shields and even garments. Skins of cattle
were made into leather and worked up into sandals, straps and
aprons for workmen. Pictures of boats are shown with
leather sails, and leather was used for manifold purposes.
The extensive use of linen for clothing necessitated a large
production of flax. Those who wove — mostly women, in
spite of Herodotus to the contrary — attained a high skill and
dexterity in their work. Linen was generally kept white, and
was frequently made so thin and sheer that the outlines of the
body were visible through it.
Of the condition and life of the average artisan, we know
that he was allowed to hold no office under the government
and had no political rights whatever. Every man was obliged
by law to have some calling and to follow it, nor could he
work at trades other than his own. This insured good work —
always exacted by the Egyptians from their workmen who
often received but meager food and no wages. Probably the
highly prized work of the goldsmith was well paid. The
Egyptians frequently paid for their goods in kind.
io6 THE world's progress.
Large numbers of laborers belonged to the state or the
temples, and they were provided only the bare necessities of
life. Some of these men knew how to chisel the hard granite
which almost defies the strong steel of today; others could
decorate tombs with animated scenes which still today retain
their original colors. All these men lived in wretched poverty,
in little mud huts, and often had to besiege their overseers
for bread. It appears to have been customary to give these
workmen their monthly rations at the beginning of the
month. Probably the supply was scanty at best, and the
hungry laborers made heavy inroads upon it during the first
few days. Ere twenty days had passed they were often entirely
out of meal for bread, to say nothing of oil and other necessi-
ties. Only a threat to appeal to the king would at times
bring the needed food. The workmen maintained that the
officers withheld from them their dues, only to add it to their
own personal stores — a claim that was no doubt well founded,
and needs no better proof than the granting of more food to
those who united and ceased to work until supplies were
forthcoming.
Markets.
For an understanding of the old Egyptian market we can
do no better than read the description worked out by Maspero
from scenes still existing in the tombs :
" WJe . . . suddenly emerge into the full sunshine
of a noisy little square, where a market is being held. Sheep,
geese, goats, asses, large-horned oxen, scattered in unequal
groups in the center, are awaiting a purchaser. Peasants,
fishermen, small retail dealers, squat several deep in front
of the houses, displaying before them, in great rush baskets
or on low tables, loaves of pastry, fruit, vegetables, fish, meat
raw or cooked, jewels, perfumes, stuffs, all the necessities
and all the superfluities of Egyptian life.
" The customers stroll past and leisurely examine the
quality of the commodities offered for sale ; each carries some
thing of his own manufacture in his hand — a new tool, some
shoes, a mat, or a small box full of rings of copper, silver, even
of gold, of the weight of an outnou (a little over two ounces),
which he proposes to barter for the objects he requires. Two
SOCIAI, LI?E IN EGYPT. IO7
customers stop at the same moment in front of a fellah, who
exhibits onions and wheat in front of a basket. Instead of
money, the first holds two necklets of glass or of many colored
earthenware, the second a round fan with a wooden handle,
and one of those triangular ventilators which the cooks use
to quicken the fire. ' Here is a beautiful necklet which will
please you, this is what you want,' cries the former; whilst
the latter urges, 'Here is a fan and a ventilator.' However,
the fellah, quite overcome by this double attack, methodically
proceeds to first seize a string of beads for closer examination.
* Let me see it, that I may fix a price.' The one asks too
much, the other too little ; from concession to concession they
finally come to terms, and settle the number of onions or the
weight of corn which the necklet or fan may be worth. Else-
where it is a question of bartering a pair of sandals or a row
of enamelled beads for some perfume. * Here,' urges the
buyer, * is a very strong pair of shoes.' But the seller does not
require shoes for the moment, so he offers one of his small
pots in exchange for a row of beads. * It is delicious when a
few drops are poured out,' he explains, with a persuasive air.
A woman thrusts under the nose of a kneeling individual
two jars, probably containing some ointment of her own manu-
facture. * Here,' she cries, * it smells sweet enough to entice
thee.' Behind this group two men are discussing the value of
a packet of fish-hooks; a woman, box in hand, is a vendor of
bracelets and necklets; another woman endeavors to obtain a
reduction upon the price of a fish, which is being dressed
before her.
" When it is a question of a large animal, or of objects
of considerable value, the accounts become intricate. For
instance, Ahmosou sells a bull for a mat, five measures of
honey, eleven measures of oil, and seven objects of different
kinds. Now, imagine the calculations which must have been
made before he succeeded in establishing such a complicated
balance. . . . The mat was estimated at 25 outnou, the
honey at 4. the oil at 10, and so on, the whole weighing 119
outnou, which is not too dear for a beast in good condition.
This custom of payment by one of the usual metals is so
convenient, and dispenses with so many calculations, that it
has been adopted even for the minor transactions of daily
io8 THE world's progress.
life. The butcher, the baker, the corn-chandler, all the small
tradesmen prefer exchange for metal, which is of small com-
pass and does not spoil, to exchange for objects, often bulky
in size, which is liable to deteriorate if kept too long in the
house. A pair of ducks is worth a quarter of an outnou in
copper ; a . fan, a quarter ; a bronze razor is worth a whole
outnou; a pickaxe, two; a goat, two; an ox-head, half an
outnou in silver; a leather bottle of fine wine, three outnou
of gold. . . ,
" Two or three commercial streets or bazaars open from
the other side of the square, and the crowd hastens towards
them when it leaves the market. Nearly their whole length
is filled with stalls and shops, in which not only Egypt, but the
majority of the oriental nations display their most varied
productions. Beautifully ornamented stuffs from Syria,
Phoenician or Hittite jewellery, scented woods and gums from
Punt and the Holy Lands; lapis and embroideries from Baby-
lon; coral, gold, iron, tin and amber from the far-distant
countries beyond the seas, are found scattered pell-mell
amongst the native fine linen, jewels, glass-work and furniture.
The shop is usually independent from the rest of the house,
and is let separately. It is a small, square room, often a
simple shed, widely open in front, and closed every evening
by means of wooden shutters, held in place by cross-bars with
one or two mats, one or two low stools, some shelves fixed to
the wall, which hold the goods; perhaps behind the shop are
one or two carefully closed rooms where the most valuable
objects are stored. Most of the tradesmen are also manufac-
turers. They have apprentices or workmen who work for
them, and they join them during the intervals betv^^een their
sales. . . . Artisans of the same trade have usually a
natural tendency to collect together, to dwell side by side in
the same place — blacksmiths with blacksmiths, curriers with
curriers, goldsmiths with goldsmiths, forming a small city
in which objects of the same kind only are found."*
The Business oe War.
It would be misleading to speak of the profession of war
in Egypt, for the Egyptians were essentially unwarlike. In
> Maspero : Ancient Egypt. 18.
SOCIAI. LiFi; IN EGYPT. IO9
early times they lived in their isolated valley, and the nature
of the country on either side of them was not such as to tempt
them to reach out to conquer it. When Nubian and nomadic
tribes stole their cattle and otherwise molested their outlying
districts, it was a comparatively simple matter to repulse them
and reduce their number. Such raids were not regular mili-
tary campaigns — far from it. They were expeditions of
plunder and pillage. " I have carried off their women and
captured their men ; for I marched to their well ; I slew their
oxen, cut down their corn and set fire to it." Thus did one
.pharaoh record his victory on a monument raised to com-
memorate it. War with tribes of this strength was not likely
to elevate the military standard of Egypt.
Contact with the Hyksos during the Middle Empire taught
the Nile dwellers more of warfare than they had previously
known. By superior use of arms these Asiatics were able
to take possession of the land, which they held until, from
the struggling feudal nobles, a ruler came forth, strong enough
to establish himself and collect an army. By adopting the
method of battle practised by the enemy, the Hyksos were at
last driven from the valley, and were pursued far beyond
their former borders.
The New Empire saw a brief period of military successes,
but they rested on a slight foundation. The Egyptians were
naturally poor soldiers. A strong and fearless general was
able to rouse them to action, and by meeting detached tribes,
they were able to overcome them. Then with confidence born
of success, they sometimes made a brilliant progress to the
civilization of Mesopotamia. Asiatics had not yet learned the
real nature of those to whom they offered tribute. When once
it was learned, tribute was no longer forthcoming, or indeed,
it was sometimes demanded by the Asiatics of Egypt.
Of the life of a private soldier, we know very little. Dur-
ing times of peace he was a tiller of the soil, or a common
laborer. He thought no hardship greater than that which
compelled him to enter the service of an army. He regarded
war as the greatest evil and was disheartened by the slightest
defeat. This was poor material to convert into effective
soldiers and only when the Egyptian king received a large
number of mercenaries into his ranks was his army particularly
efficient.
1—9
no THB world's progress.
Many times several thousand soldiers were dispatched to
escort workmen sent to obtain granite for the king's tomb. It
is probable that their duties were less military than civil, for
they no doubt were set to cutting out the granite from the
quarry and assisted in transporting it to the building site.
Of the equipment of the soldiers, it seems that in early
times they carried simply a bow, wearing ostrich feathers on
their heads as a token of victory. Later they carried shields
and spears or battle axes. The order of battle in later times
was to place chariots in the front and rear, with strong de-
tachments of infantry between them. Ramses II. caused the
whole story of his victory over the Hittite king at Kadesh to be
painted in his temple. This is one of the best sources for
military history during the New Empire. " We see how the
soldiers of the * first army of Amon ' pitch their camp ; the
shields are placed side by side so as to construct a great four-
cornered enclosure. One entrance only is left, and this is
fortified with barricades and is defended by four divisions of
infantry. In the middle of the camp a large square space indi-
cates the position of the royal tent; the smaller tents of the
officers surround it. The wide space between these tents
and the outer enclosure serves as a camping-ground for the
common soldiers and for the cattle, and here we see a series
of life-like scenes, in the representation of which the Egyptian
artist has evidently taken great delight. In one corner stands
the rows of war-chariots ; the horses are unharnessed and paw
the ground contentedly, while they receive their food. Close
by are posted the two- wheeled baggage cars; the oxen are
looking round at the food, and do not appear to trouble them-
selves about the king's big tame lion, which has lain down
near them wearied out. The most characteristic animal in
the camp, however, is the donkey with his double panniers in
which he has to carry the heavy sacks and jars of provisions.
We meet with him here, there, and everywhere, in all manner
of positions; for instance, he drops on his knee indignantly,
as if he could carry his panniers no longer; he prances about
when the soldiers want to lade him with the sacks; he lies
down and brays, or he takes his ease rolling in the dust near
his load. The boys, also, whose business it is to fasten up the
donkeys to pegs, contribute to the general liveliness of the
SOCIAL UFE IN EGYPT. Ill
canip; in more than one place they have begun to quarrel
about their work, and in their anger they beat each other
with the pegs. Other boys belonging to the camp have to
hang the baggage on posts, or to bring food for the soldiers,
or to fetch the skins of w:iter. These boys insist upon quarrel-
ing too; the skins are thrown down, and they use their fists
freely.
" In contrast to these scenes of daily life in the camp, we
have on the other hand a representation of the wild confusion
of battle. Close to the bank of the Orontes is the royal chariot,
in which the king stands drawn up to his full height; behind
and on each side the chariots of the Cheta^ surround him;
while many more are crossing the stream. The Egyptian
chariots are indeed in the rear of the king, but in ordei to
come to his help they would have first to force a way through
the chariots of the Cheta. In the meantime, the Pharaoh fights
by himself, and pours down such a frightful rain of arrows
on the enemy that they fly in wild confusion. Hit by the
arrows, their horses take fright, dash the chariots to pieces,
and throw out the warriors, or they get loose and breaking
through their own ranks, spread confusion everywhere. The
dead and the wounded Cheta fall one upon anotlier; those
who escape the arrows of the king throw themselves into the
Orontes and try to swim across to Kadesh, which is seen on
the opposite bank surrounded by walls and trenches. . . .
** Whilst the Pharaoh thus slays the Cheta, the prince of
the latter people stands watching the battle from the corner
between Kadesh and the Orontes in the midst of a mighty
square of 8,000 foot soldiers of the elite of his troops; *he
does not come out to fight, because he is afraid before his
Majesty, since he has seen his Majesty.* When he sees that
the battle is lost, he says in admiration : * He is as Sutech the
glorious, Ba'al lives in his body.' "*
'That is, the Hittite king.
'Erman: Life in Ancient Egypt, 529.
12 THE WORI^d'S progress.
CHAPTER XII.
Praising Learning.*
I have seen violence, I have seen violence, give thy heart after
letters.
I have seen one free from labors ; consider there is not any-
thing beyond letters.
Love letters as thy mother. I make its beauty go in thy face.
It is a greater possession than all besides.
He who has commenced to avail himself is from his infancy
a counsellor.
He is sent to perform commissions.
He who does not go is in sack-cloth.
I have not seen a blacksmith on a commission, a founder who
goes on an embassy.
I have seen the blacksmith at his work at the mouth of the
furnace.
His fingers like things of crocodiles, he smells worse than
the eggs of fishes.
Every carpenter carrying tools, — is he more at rest than the
laborer ?
I tell you the fisherman suffers more than any employment.
Consider, is he not toiling on the river? he is mixed with the
crocodiles.
Should the clumps of papyrus diminish, then he is crying for
help.
If he has not been told that a crocodile is not there, terrors
blind him.
Consider, there is not an employment destitute of superior
ones
Except the scribe, who is first, for he knows letters ; he is
greater than they,
Shouldst thou walk after great men, thou art to proceed with
great knowledge.
Do i?ot say proud words. Be sealed in thyself alone.
• From inscriptloii on a tomb ; trans, in "Dwellers on the Nile."
social life, in egypt. ii3
Schools and Education.
The Greek loved learning for itself alone. Not so the
Egyptian. He, too, praised learning and considered no call-
ing so worthy as that of the scribe. It was not because an
education lifted one out of a sordid world to purer heights of
knowledge, however, but rather, because the scribe was exempt
from physical exertion, and if ambitious and persevering,
might find all official doors open to him. A citizen wished
his son to receive an education in order that he might occupy
a position superior and less arduous than he could other-
wise hope to fill. The lot of the laborer in Egypt was hard.
Working constantly he could but provide himself and family
with their scanty food and scanty clothing. At any time he
might be pressed into public service and here he was fortunate
if he received " one clean garment once a month," in addition
to his monthly rations. Scribes were safe from physical
toil. Quite naturally, it followed that a family would make
every possible sacrifice that one of the children might be fitted
for a life more safe and comfortable than the average. No
higher ideal, no loftier motive seems to have actuated the
parent than this: to qualify his son for an easy and lucrative
position in life.
There were elementary schools in Egypt in an early age.
These were open to all children, who probably paid a small
fee to the teacher. Gradually also, there grew up around
the temples schools for the training of boys for the priest-
hood. A? the empire grew and tribute was asked and received
from many tribes and countries, many scribes — copyists and
accountants — were needed in the service of the government,
and schools were opened in connection with the court to edu-
cate boys to meet this new demand.
Having spent a few years in the elementary school, the
average boy was set to work to assist with the cattle, gather
fuel, care for the ducks and geese about his home, and later
was put to learn a trade — generally the trade of his father.
However, if a boy showed special aptitude for learning or
seemed more alert and clever than ordinary, he was sent to
the school for scribes. Here the training was vigorous. The
scribe would waken the youth, calling: "The books axe
114 THE world's progress.
already in the hands of thy companions, take hold of thy
clothes and call for thy sandals ! " Discipline was rigid in-
deed. An old adage held that a boy's ears are placed on his
back — he hears if he is flogged.
You will remember how complex were the Egyptian styles
of writing — ^both hieroglyphic and demotic. Consequently
to be able to read and write was considered a great accom-
plishment. Having mastered the art of writing, the youth
was set next to copying. Many of the old copy book= still
exist, for it was customary to place them in the tomb with
the deceased. Three pages a day was the usual lesson. " By
the age of ten or twelve," says Maspero, " the child was
. apprenticed to a scribe in some office, who would
undertake to make him a learned scribe. The boy accom-
panied his master to the office or work-yard, and there passed
entire months copying letters, circulars, legal documents, or
accounts, which he did not at first understand, but which he
faithfully remembered. . . . The pupil copied and copied,
the master inserted forgotten words, corrected the faults of
spelling, and drew on the margin the signs or groups unskill-
fully traced. When the book was finished and the apprentice
could write all the formulas from memory, the master entrusted
him with the composition of a few letters, gradually increac-
ing the number and adding new difficulties. As soon as he
had fairly mastered the ordinary daily routine his education
was ended, and an unimportant post was sought." '
The Egyptians never investigated a subject until they
reduced it to a science. A certain knowledge of geometry
was necessary to determine boundaries of land, so valuable
along the river that very small areas were sometimes in
dispute. A knowledge sufficient for this purpose the Egyp-
tians possessed, but they never delved deeper into the matter
and became proficient in it. They studied astronomy and
made charts of portions of the heavens. They studied arith-
metic, but never, for example, wrote a fraction with a num-
erator larger than 1 ; instead of writing Yz or % they wrote :
Yi, y^'i y2, %' It has taken much patience and some mgen-
uity to understand problems found already worked out in the
copy books.
2 Maspero : Ancient Egypt, 9.
^OCIAIv LIFK IN EGYPT. 115
The subject of medicine was deemed important, but the
ancient Egyptians knew nothing about it, generally speaking.
Magic, drugs, herbs and incatitations were used together.
Believing that the welfare of the soul depended upon the
preservation of the body, students never had the opportunity
of dissecting bodies, either animal or human. They had no
idea of the vital organs, and when they were successful in
relieving a patient, it was when, like some old herb woman,
they had learned the properties of healing plants and had
watched their effects in many cases until they became skillful
in administering them. When one was ill, it was thought
that an evil spirit had entered his body. By magic words
this must be driven out before recovery could be hoped for.
Magic greatly aided medicine, according to this view. Here
is a formula for a magic mixture : " Take two grains of
incense, two fumigations, two jars of cedar oil, two jars of
tas, two jars of wine, two jars of spirits of wine. Apply it
at the place of thy heart. Thou art protected against the
accidents of life; thou art protected against a violent death;
thou art protected against fire; thou are not ruined on earth,
and thou escapest in heaven."
Literature.
Egypt seems to have been lacking in any considerable num-
ber of literary works. Records were kept in the temples;
treatises on religion, magic and medicine have been found.
The Book of the Dead was familiar to the living and indis-
pensable to the departed. Some folk lore, hymns of wor-
ship and of victory, and a few stories, more or less complete,
remain. Vast numbers of papyri have undoubtedly perished,
but reference would probably be made in existing manuscripts
to great productions, and these are lacking. Giving all credit
to what has been recovered and allowing for the destruction
of time, the fact remains that in literature Egypt was not
productive.
There are no literary remains antedating the Middle
Empire ; however, we have traces of folk songs and of myths
which were earlier known. The old belief that the Egyptians
had no secular literature was mistaken. Our greatest sources
of knowledge regarding their literature have been the tombs
Il6 THE WORI,D*S PROGRESS,
and temples, and these were not places in which a people
would have chosen to preserve its lighter literature.
It is probable that just as the workmen sing today, while
they work along the Nile, so too they chanted in earliest
times. Under the most trying conditions in Egypt, laborers
sang as they worked. The scribes did not think it worthy
of their dignity to chronicle folk songs. Probably little
thought was ever given to them. Occasionally a few lines
are quoted beneath some tomb pictures to make it more vivid.
'' The herdsman wading in the mud as he drives his sheep
over the fields from which the flood has not yet entirely
retreated, says to his flock : * In the water walks your shep-
herd with the fishes; with the catfish talketh he; with the
fish he changeth greeting.' Another song accompanied the
work equivalent to threshing. The ancient Egyptians, like
the Israelites, did not use flails, but after scattering the corn
on the threshing-floor, they drove oxen over it to tread out
the grain. Then was sung with variations : * Thresh, oh
ye oxen! Thresh for yourselves! Oh ye oxen thresh for
yourselves! Thresh straw for your fodder, thresh grain for
your master. Take ye no rest, cool is the air this day.' " *
Mythological tales grew out of an attempt to explain
natural phenomena — the rising or setting sun, the struggle
between light and darkness. All phenomena which attracted
sufficient attention furnished material for myths. It has been
observed for instance, that certain stars never set, whereas
others after performing their courses sank below the horizon.
The Egyptians expressed this by the myth of the Crocodile
of the West, which fed upon the setting stars.
" The sunrise and sunset, alternation of day and night,
the solar drama in all its details, furnished the subject of
Egyption mythology. In other countries the sun-god rode
in a chariot; in Egypt he rode in a boat. Hence the sky is
considered an expanse of water, the Nile being the earthly
representative. Seb is the earth. Nut the heaven, Osiris their
son, is the snn and is wedded to Isis, the dawn. From their
union sprang Horus, the Sun in his full strength. Set the
destroyer, is another child of Seb and Nut. He is darkness
•Popular Literature of Ancient Egypt. Wiedermann.
SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT. II 7
and weds Nephthys, the Sunset. The contest between Seb
and Osiris is the constant subject of mythological story."
Traces of these early folk songs and early myths survived
in Egy^ptian literature. The literature of the Middle Empire
shows an eager interest in travel. Of the few books that
remain from this period several relate adventures in distant
parts.
Most of the remaining literature belongs to the New Em-
pire. Lyrical and didactic poems, stories, records and docu-
ments were then produced in considerable number. It would
appear that the Egyptians never wrote a history of their
country. Accounts, more or less in detail, cover several reigns,
but nothing like a chronological treatise of their development
was apparently undertaken The New Empire knew far less
of the Old Empire than we know today.
In the realm of religious writing, the Book of the Dead
was most important. Its negative confession to be made
before the judges of the dead would imply a high degree of
morality, but the truth was that it came into being in an
early stage when words were thought identical with the thing
itself. We find all peoples passing through a period when
great importance was given the spoken word. " I have not
been idle ; I have not been intoxicated ; I have not told secrets ;
I have not told falsehoods ; I have not defrauded ; I have
not slandered; I have not caused tears; I have given food
to the hungry; drink to the thirsty, and clothes to the "naked."
That confession was probably formulated in this early period
when such stress was given to the spoken word. I^ater,
when people understood the difference between the name and
the thing itself the confession remained the same, because all
things pertaining to religion are last to change.
The Precepts of Ptah-hotep, prince of the Fifth dynasty, is
one of the oldest known books in the world. It is now in the
Bibliotheque Nationale at Paris and is made up of what would
be equivalent to twenty printed pages of precepts written to
admonish the young. The following indicate their nature :
" Be not arrogant because of that which thou knowest,
no artist being in possession of the perfection to which he
should aspire."
" If thou hast become great after having been little, harden
Ii8
th^ world's progress.
not thy heart; thou art only the steward of the good things
of God."
" Let thy face be cheerful as long as thou livest ; hast
any one come out of the coffin after having once entered it?"
Before leaving this brief consideration of Egyptian writ-
ing, we should understand what supplied the writing material
of Egypt, The papyrus reeds have frequently been mentioned
with no explanation of their use. From this word papyrus
has been derived our word paper.
The reeds grew thick along the sides of streams. Their
stems were three cornered and about three inches wide at
the base. By peeling off the outer tough green covering, a
white pith was obtained. Splitting it and laying strips
together, the edges lapping, and upon a surface so formed
placing a second layer running the other way, sprinkling the
whole with the muddy Nile water, and putting it all under
a press made up the process of manufacturing a composition
which could be cut into thin sheets. These afforded all the
writing material known until the seventh century after Christ,
when prepared skins, or parchment, were sometimes substi-
tuted.
EGYPTIAN SCRIBES
SOCIAI, LIFE IN EGYPT. II9
CHAPTER XIII.
Religion of Ancient Egypt.
The life of the ancient Egyptians was in a great measure
controlled by their religious beliefs. In prehistoric times, as
'has already been explained, each nome, or province, was
independent, and was the home of some tribe or tribes. Just
as we find the American Indian worshipping the stick that
was powerful enough to throw him in the forest, so these
primitive people worshipped animals and trees. Each animate
object was conceived as possessing a soul or spirit, and this
spirit accounted for the qualities or characteristics of the
object — were they good or ill. A lion possessed savage
tendencies — hence they would worship him and propitiate his
spirit, and their attitude was the same toward the crocodile,
the ram, the elephant, and many other animals. The date-
palm brought them great blessings — therefore they would
worship the tree and insure a continuance of these blessings.
As time went on, they grew to worship gods, and to the gods
these trees and animals, worshipped earlier on their own
account, were thought sacred.
Each village and town had its own local deity and special
objects of worship, while the nome as a whole recognized
gods of a more general character. In this way, each province
of Upper Egypt — which was older in civilization than the
Delta — and various portions of Lower Egypt, developed
religions complete and independent of one another. After
many hundred years, when all Egypt was united under one
government and one king, the priests attempted to comprise
these various beliefs into a common faith, to recognize the
principal gods of all the nomes in the temples, and to evolve
one religious system from the many local systems. This they
never succeeded in fully accomplishing. They included in
their lists some seventy deities, and harmonized some features
of worship, but each locality clung to its ancient deity and
several different religions can be traced throughout Egyptian
history.
120 TH« world's progress.
Like most primitive people, the Egyptians worshipped the
sun. This god revealed himself in many forms, but chiefly as
Horus, represented by a falcon, and Re or Ra, represented by the
Scarabaeus.
Osiris ruled in the kingdom of the dead, and he was thought
to be just and good. With his wife, Isis, and his son, Horus,
he was worshipped throughout the land, while everywhere Set
was regarded as the principle of Evil.
Qeb was the god of Earth and Nut, his wife, the queen
of the heavens, which in this connection signifies the skies.
Their children were Osiris, Isis, Set, and Nebthet (Nephthys).
Mat was the goddess of truth and justice.
One finds similarities between some of these divinities and
the divinities of the Greeks — as for example. Nut reminds one
of Hera, and Set was feared as much as Pluto ; but it is danger-
ous to make these comparisons, for the religious conceptions
of the two nations were fundamentally different.
The Egyptians usually represented their deities with human
bodies and the heads of the animal sacred to each. So, for
example, Horus always has the head of a sparrow-hawk;
Thot, that of an Ibis, and so on. The prominent feature
of this religion was the veneration of animals. It was
believed that sometimes the god-spirit took up his abode within
certain animals, and for this reason certain animals were
regarded as sacred and were therefore, objects of worship.
Ptah was the god of Memphis. He, it was believed, took
the form of the Apis-bull, hence this bull was regarded as
sacred.
" The Apis bull dwelt in a temple of his own near the
city, had his train of attendant priests, his meals of the choicest
food, his grooms and currycombers who kept his coat clean
and beautiful, his chamberlains who made up his bed, his
cup-bearers who brought his water, and on certain days was
led in a festive procession through the main streets of the
town, so that the inhabitants might see him, and come forth
from their dwellings and make obeisance. When he died
he was carefully embalmed, and deposited, together with mag-
nificent jewels and statuettes and vases, in a polished granite
sarcophagus, cut out of a single block, and weighing between
sixty and seventy tons. The cost of an Apis funeral amounted
SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT. 121
sometimes, as we are told, to as much as $100,000. Near
Memphis the number of Apis bulls buried in this fashion was
found to be sixty-four." *
In another locality the crocodile was the object of adora-
tion, because, as in the case of the Apis bull, it was believed
that some god dwelt within it.
" The crocodile was principally worshipped about Lake
Moeris. A chosen number of these animals were kept in
the temples, where they were given elegant apartments and
treated to every luxury at public expense. Let us imagine
a crocodile, fresh from a warm, sumptuous bath, anointed
with the most precious ointments and perfumed with fragrant
odors; its head and neck glittering with jeweled earrings and
necklace, and its feet with bracelets wallowing on a rich and
costly carpet to receive the worship of intelligent human
b'-ings ! Its death was mourned as a public calamity ; its
body, wrapped in linen, was carried to the embalmers, attended
by a train of people weeping and beating their breasts in
grief; then having been expensively embalmed and bandaged
in gaily colored mummy cloths, amid imposing ceremonies
it was laid away in its rock sepulchre."
For these absurdities the Egyptians were ridiculed by other
nations of their own times. Their adoration of animals led
to most degrading excesses. The cat was considered sacred
throughout the land, and punishment of death was meted out
to persons injuring one.
WORSHIP OF THE NILE.
Hymn to The Nile.
Hail to thee O Nile!
Thou shewest thyself in this land
Coming in peace, giving life to Egypt ;
O Ammon (thou) leadest night into day,
A leading that rejoices the heart!
Overflowing the gardens created by Ra.
Giving life to all animals ;
Watering the lands without ceasing,
»See Marietta's Monuments of Upper Egypt,
122 THE WORI^d'S PROGRESS.
The way of heaven descending,
Lover of food, bestower of corn,
Giving light to every home, O Ptah!
Bringer of food! Great Lord of provisions,
, Creator of all good things!
Lord of terrors and of choicest joys!
All are combined in him.
He produceth grass for the oxen.
Providing \ictims for every god.
The choice incense is that which he supplies.
Lord in both regions,
He filleth the granaries, enricheth the storehouses,
He careth for the state of the poor.
Thou shinest in the city of the King;
Then the householders are satiated with good things,
The poor man laughs at the lotus.
All things are perfectly ordered.
Every kind of herb for thy children,
If food should fail,
. All enjoyment is cast on the ground,
The land falls in weariness.
O inundation of Nile, offerings are made to thee:
Oxen are slain to thee :
Great festivals are kept for thee;
Fowls of the field are caught for thee.
Pure flowers are offered to thee.
Offerings are made to every god
As they are made unto the Nile.
incense ascends unto heaven,
Oxen, bulls, fowls are burnt!
Nile makes for himself chasms in the South;
Unknown is his name in heaven,
He doth not manifest his forms,
Vain are all representations!
SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT. I23
Shine forth, shine forth, O Nile, shine forth
Giving life to his oxen by the pastures,
Giving life to men by his oxen,
Shine forth in glory, O Nile!
More natural seems to us the worship of the Nile. There
was a certain beauty which we today can still appreciate in
the festivals celebrated each year on the banks of the rising
water — which alone brought happiness and prosperity to all.
Hapi was the god of the Nile and he was worshipped alike
throughout Upper and Lower Egypt. Hymns were chanted
to him, as it was believed he might be importuned to rise high
enough to insure sufficient water, while if neglected, only a
partial flood might occur. One of these hymns was some-
thing like this :
Hail to thee, Hapi
Who descendeth upon earth
And giveth life unto Egypt.
Thou who art hidden in the unknown
Whose waters spread upon the fields
Which the sun-god hath created;
And giveth life to all who are athirst.
Thou, the Creator of corn.
The Maker of barley
Do thy waters cease to flow,
Then are all mankind in misery;
When thou wanest in heaven
The gods and all living things perish.
It would be useless for us to attempt to become familiar
with all the Egyptian divinities. In the age when people
conceived and worshipped them, the gods of a given locality
were often unknown in a neighboring city, and the animals
held to be sacred in one town might be eaten as food in
another.
In addition to all their deities, ancestors were worshipped
by the Egyptians, and an altar was erected to the departed
in every home.
It was believed that the soul left the body after death in the
form of a bird (ba), dwelled apart from the body, but would
often return to it for nourishment and earthly comforts. In
124 THE WORIvD'S progress.
early days, therefore, food in great abundance was placed in
the tomb, or the priests were paid to provide daily food for the
deceased. Later it was felt that the ka — or that portion of the
dead which required nourishment — was a mere shadow, a ghost,
a phantom, and so pictures of things to eat would satisfy
as well as the articles themselves. Carrying out this idea,
the Egyptians pictured upon tomb walls all stages of growing
grain, from the time the seed dropped upon the mellow soil
until the ground flour was served in loaves for the feast;
meat was shown, in all its forms: from the ox, feeding in
the pasture, to the juicy roasts, made ready for the table.
Such scenes as these adorned the interior chambers of the
tomb; upon them, it was believed, the phantom-like ka might
look and be appeased.
In a recently excavated tomb, liquid honey was discovered.
Meats too, encased for at least 3,000 years, for the sustenance
of the deceased, were here, while a lengthy menu covered a
wall, stating the amount of food at the disposal of the departed.
5,006 geese, so it read, were at his command, but the number
5,006 was simply written beneath one pictured goose!
Beds, chairs, toilet articles, chariots, and countless other
objects were left in the tomb of the well-to-do Egyptian, but
were placed apart from the mummy, which was sealed up
in a private apartment by itself, while a statue or image of
the deceased was left near the belongings.
It was believed that at death the ba — or soul — went on
a long journey to the land where Osiris reigned, and so great
were the dangers of the way that many amulets and charms
were laid by the departed to assist him in passing the obstacles
of the road he must needs encounter. He who arrived at
last at the land of Peace, where the joys of life abided with-
out the sorrows of earth, came into the presence of Osiris.
Here he made a negative confession, similar to the following:
" Hail unto you, ye lords of Truth ! hail to thee, great god,
lord of Truth and Justice! I have not committed iniquity
against men! I have not oppressed the poor! I have not
laid labor upon any free man beyond that which he wrought
for himself ! I have not starved any man ! I have not caused
any to weep! . . . There is no crime against me in this
land of the Double Truth! "
Dromos a.\d Second Pylon, Temple of Kafnak.
SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT. I25
These and many more denials of sin were made and it
sometimes happened that the confession was inscribed on
one wall of a tomb while elsewhere were shown captives
taken in war, slaves oppressed by labor, and other incidents
in the earthly career of the departed which lead us to infer
that the gods were supposed to be too mighty to take notice
of most remarkable contradictions.
After the confession of the candidate for admission to
the realm of Osiris, his good and evil deeds were weighed
in a balance and if his virtues outweighed his failings, he
was admitted to the land of the departed, a counterpart of
his own Egypt.
A vast priesthood was required to preside over a religious
system so complex as that of Egypt and the priests gained
great influence over the people. The reason for this is
apparent when we consider the prevailing ideas of the country.
The body of the dead must be preserved, for upon its preserva-
tion depended the fate of the soul. To this end the body must
be properly embalmed and entombed. The embalmers were
under the control and supervision of the priests. Again, the
soul of the departed must be assisted upon its perilous journey
to Osiris by prayers said over each finger and each portion
of the body. These prayers could be offered only by the
priests themselves. Such a condition as this gave the priest-
hood of Egypt an opportunity to make itself supreme in the
land, and this opportunity it was quick to seize upon.
Temples.
Many questions concerning Egyptian worship still remain
unanswered. What part did the citizen take in the worship
of his national gods? What effect did the worship of these
gods have upon his life? We do not know — we cannot tell.
It appears that his ancestral gods, worshipped at an altar in
his own house, where of first importance. Some understanding
of the temples and temple ceremonies cannot fail to throw
light upon this old religion. Several of the old ruined temples
may be seen today, standing like forest trees which have out-
lived their neighbors.
There is not in all Egypt a temple perfectly preserved;
but by locating here an avenue of approach, there, a gateway,
T— 10
126 THE WORIJ>'S PROGRESS.
finding courts in other places, and halls and chapels, one
comes at length to piece the whole together and to get some
conception of the original entirety of the ancient temple.
In Greece the people built temples to their gods. In
Egypt the king built them. Offerings were brought to the
shrines of the Greek gods by every citizen in the land. In
Egypt most of the gifts came from the king. To be sure
there were special offerings made by all on feast days, but
the king and the priests were alone responsible for the Egyp-
tian temples; and while throngs accompanied processions
thither on days of sacred festival, there is nothing to show
that they had any part in the ceremonies.
The general plan of the temple was this: an avenue of
approach — varying in length, and lined usually on either side
by rows of sphinxes — led to a gateway, guarded by towers.
In the Old Empire these towers served for defense, and seem
later to have been* preserved for decorative purposes. The
gate admitted one to a court, open to the sky and outlined
by pillars. In direct line with the gateway was the entrance
to a large hall, supported by columns and lighted by small
openings under the roof. Within this hall were celebrated
the sacred festivals. At the end of the hall a small chapel
was built which contained an image of the god of the temple.
Sometimes two other chapels were placed, one on each side
of this, and contained images of the god's wife and son, or
his wife and daughter. The images sometimes represented
the animal sacred to the god, or, again, would have a human
body and merely the head of the sacred animal or bird. Later
an image of the god himself was attempted. The tiny room
or cell wherein these were kept was called the Holy of Holies.
Before the door were inscribed these words: Four times
must he purify himself who enters here.
Some temples were much more elaborate and complex than
the simple one just described.
The doors of these chapels were always left sealed, and
whenever they were opened, a clay seal was affixed. Having
purified himself, the priest would fill the hall with the smoke
of incense, break the seal, open the door and fall down, offer-
ing incense and kissing the ground before the image. Then
a hymn of praise was probably sung.
social life in egypt, 127
Rise oe the Nile.
" King and Father, gift and giver,
God revealed in form of river,
Issuing perfect and sublime,
From the fountain-head of time;
" Whom eternal mystery shroudeth,
Unapproached, untraced, unknown ;
Whom the Lord of heaven encloudeth
With the curtains of his throne;
'* From the throne of heaven descending,
Glory, power, and goodness blending,
Grant us, ere the daylight dies,
Token of thy rapid rise."
Ha, it cometh ! Furrowing, flashing,
Red blood rushing o'er brown breast;
Peaks and ridges, and dome dashing
Foam on foam, crest on crest !
But the time of times for wonder
Is when ruddy sun goes under;
And the dust throws, half afraid.
Silver shuttles of long shade.
Opens then a scene, the fairest
Ever burst on human view ;
Once behold, and then comparcst
Nothing in the world thereto.
Every skiff a big ship seemeth,
Every bush with tall wings clad;
Every man his good brain deemeth
The only brain that is not mad.
'Tis the signal Thebes hath waited,
Libyan Thebes, the hundred-gated ;
Rouse and robe thee. River-priest
For thy dedication feast!
— Blackmore : Florilla.
128 THE world's progress.
Reugious Ceremonies.
The Egyptian believed that his god had needs similar to
those he himself experienced. Consequently each day the
god needed to be clothed and fed. " The priest laid his hands
on him (the image of the god), he took off the old rouge
and his former clothes, all of course with the necessary formu-
lae. He then dressed the god in the robe called the Nems,
saying : ' Come white dress ! come white dress ! come white
eye of Horus, which proceeds from the town of Nechebt.
The gods dress themselves with thee in thy name Dress, and
the gods adorn themselves with thee in thy name Adornment.'
The priest then dressed the god in the great dress, rouged
him, and presented him with his insignia : the sceptre, the
staff of ruler, and the whip, the bracelets and anklets, as
well as the two feathers which he wore on his head, because
' he has triumphed over his enemies, and is more splendid
than gods or spirits.' The god required further a collarette
and an amulet, two red, two green, and two white bands;
when these had been presented to him the priest might then
leave the chapel." ^
Food and drink must needs be placed daily on his table.
Lists of offerings made by the Ramesides have come down
to us. One records offerings in the temple as follows: each
v were received 3,220 loaves of bread, 24 cakes, 144 jugs
of beer, 32 geese, besides honey, flowers and incense. This
food was probably used to feed the corps of assistants around
the temple — the priests, servants and laborers. On feast days
the people sent offerings. A large number of loaves of bread
are recorded on certain days; these probably came from the
poorer people. Again, an overwhelming number of cakes
and jugs of wine would indicate offerings from the wealthy.
On feast days the king would himself perform part of
the ceremonies, and as a king he would worship himself as
a god. It sometimes seems as though the offerings and the
ceremonies were made more to do honor to the king than
to the god. When Ramses called for plans for a new grotto
temple and heard the reports of his architects, an inscription
tells us that he answered them after this fashion : " The
a Ancient Egypt, 274.
SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT. I29
temple we have in mind already lies hidden by the gods in
yonder mountain. You have but to clear away the waste
material and your work is done. See to it, however, that
ihe deities Ra and Isis and Ptah and I are all represented in
oecoming size on the facade as guardians — two on each side
of the pylon. And mark you: see that no god has choice
of position over the king; let the likeness and the form of
them all be mine. Osiris must man the eight piers which
support the roof, and we four be seated in the sanctuary,
side by side."
Alany buildings surrounded the temple, and the whole
was enclosed by a wall. Various buildings were needed in
order that all the functions of the temple could be performed.
On one side was a court where the animals and birds intended
for sacrifice were prepared. To the rear was a kitchen. The
priests often received private revenues for providing food
for the departed. This food as a rule was prepared in the
kitchens of the temple. Dwellings for the priests, and the
servants, store houses, granaries, the treasure house, gardens
and an artificial lake lay within the temple wall. In the
sacred lake the priests bathed, and in it they washed the
vessels pertaining to the sanctuary.
The priestly duties were manifold. Certain priests poured
out drink offerings; others recited from holy books; others
kept the annals of the temples. Their incomes were paid
in kind — like all other obligations of the time. So many
ioaves of bread, so many jugs of wine, beer and cakes made
up their annual revenue.
While we may gain some feeble idea of these places of
worship, built to do honor to the god — and to the king, —
any description of them must necessarily be inadequate. " We
may agree that neither the boldest imagination nor the most
exact study, can enable us to form an adequate conception
of the splendors of an Eg>'ptian temple in its perfect state.
The vast space it occupied ; its lofty gateways ; the long
avenues of sphinxes; the glittering obelisks and the lifelike
expressions of the monstrous statues, form a combination of
the most imposing architectural grandeur. The aesthethic
qualities of these structures cannot briefly be summed up.
As we ponder them we shall be willing to acknowledge, for
130 THS world's progress.
we shall discover, the exceptional constructive power of the
ancient architects; we shall see how closely they followed
Nature, and at times drew as well upon foreign art, though
always preserving their own principles of form. There is
always one grand imaginative vein running through all their
work — which expresses the principal idea of their faith —
imperishability.
" The ancient Egyptians copied no one. Their art sprang
from their surroundings. What they have left continues to
baffle us in many ways. We may understand perspective
better than they did ; we are their superiors in the use of light
and shadow. We dare to build higher, and we are willing
to trust thousands of lives to walls which would be wrecked
if a single Egyptian column should fall against them; but
we do not yet understand how they lifted their great masses
to such lofty places, nor do we know where their architects
studied art." *
Little has thus far been said of the sphinxes which
ordinarily flanked the avenues leading up to these temples.
These imaginary creatures were carved in stone, and having
the body of a lion, had either the head of a ram or a human
head. When the Sphinx is mentioned reference is usually
made to the huge stone monument lying near the Great
Pyramid. This was a natural rock, to which was given,
more or less accurately, the external appearance of that mytho-
logical animal. The head was sculptured; the body was
sculptured; the body was formed of the rock itself, filled out
where necessary, by rather clumsy masonry of limestone. The
total height of the Sphinx is 65 feet. The ear measures 6 feet
5 inches; the nose, 5 feet 10 inches; the mouth, 7 feet 8 inches.
Its ponderous human face, grave in its eternal repose, rising
in the midst of desert wastes, has been a great puzzle to people
for thousands of years. It was probably hewn out of the rock
as a symbol of the power of some Pharaoh of the Pyramid-age.
The sphinxes which lined approaches to the temples were of
course much smaller than this, and were carved merely for
decorative purposes. An Egyptian god was given the image of
the sphinx, and whether it was in honor of him, or merely
'Edward Wilson, Scribner, Oct. '88.
SOCIAI, U?E IN EGYPT. I3I
because the symbol was a favorite one, that so many of these
mystic animals were used, is not known.
A final word regarding the faith which prompted the build-
ing of the Egyptian temples should perhaps be added. We hear
much about the absurd and corrupt side of the Egyptian relig-
ion, but few have taken the trouble to acquaint themselves with
its brighter side. Our ideas on the subject have been determined
largely by the writings of the Greeks and Romans who knew
only the last decadent period of Egyptian history. The decipher-
ment of the hieroglyphs has enabled us to study the contem-
porary documents and inscriptions, and as a result the religious
ideas developed by the Egyptians have not only aroused our
deepest interest, but are commanding our admiration.
Like all other peoples in the same stage of culture, the
primitive Egyptians feared and tried to render harmless, and
perchance useful, the powers of nature, always mysterious
because not understood. Thus arose the worship of natural
phenomena, plants, animals and the dead. If we remember
that among our own ignorant masses many of the religious
ideas of our primitive forefathers survive in what we call super-
stition, we will not judge the common people of Egypt for hold-
ing fast to the beliefs of their ancestors, for it is true that they
did so all through Egypt's long history. Hence the ridicule
of the Greeks.
But there is another side to the picture. No people has
ever developed a culture like that of the Egyptians without
also reaching a purer conception of God. Way back in the Fifth
dynasty we find the beginnings of a monotheistic tendency in
the religion of Egypt. Indeed even earlier the priests of Heli-
opolis had taught the idea of the unity of the deity who mani-
fested himself in the creative energy of the Sun. The Pharaohs
of the Fifth dynasty took up the cult of Re (or Ra) as this god
was called, raising mighty obelisks on the edge of the desert
back of Memphis, before which stood altars of alabaster under
the open sky: for this god could not be represented by any
image and consequently needed no temple, no house of god.
As time went on this idea of the unity of the deity — largely,
it is true, as a "mystery" understood only by the priests and
other "initiated" ones, spread over the whole of Egypt. As a
result the local deities, no matter what their origin, came to be
132 THE world's progress.
regarded as manifestations of the one god Re, whose name was
added to those of the local gods. We are all familiar with
Amon of Thebes. This god, whose origin is very obscure, was
of course a local deity, and when Thebes became the capital
of the Empire, was raised to the kingship of all the gods. But
it will be observed that to do this, the priests felt it necessary
to identify him with Re and to speak of him henceforth not
as Amon, but as Amon-Re.
But this was not a step forward. The priests of Re had
taught that god is one and might be worshiped anywhere. It
was not even necessary to have temples. When, however, such
a local divinity as Amon of Thebes was identified with Re, as
one of this god's manifestations, he received all the attributes
of the one god, but at the same time remained god of Thebes
and the priests never raised any theological objections when the
Pharaohs erected the mighty temples of that city for the glory
of their god and the perpetuation of their own deeds. Indeed the
Pharaohs regarded themselves as his viceroys on earth. The
attempted "reform" of Amen-hotep IV., which, as we saw, was
so disastrous for his line, was largely an attempt to restore the
purer worship of the Sun-god, not as Re but as Aton. But the
priests of Amon-Re, who had already looked with disfavor,
which they dared not express, upon the claims of the earlier
Pharaohs of the Eighteenth dynasty — Amen-hotep III. during
his lifetime had gone so far as to build a temple in which he
worshipped his own ka, broke with Amen-hotep IV., were perse-
cuted by him after he had removed to his new city, but in the
end were able to overthrow the dynasty and place upon the
throne kings who would recognize them as the intermediaries
between god and man. In the end they themselves seized the
throne — and it was not long before Egyptian history was at an
end.
"God is the Eternal One. He is eternal andlnfinite ; and en-
dureth forever and ever. He hath endured for countless
ages and He shall endure to all eternity.
"No man knoweth how to know Him. His name remaineth
hidden. His name is a mystery unto His children.
His names are innumerable ; they are manifold and none
knoweth their number."
'^Trans. from Brugsch; quoted in Budge, Egyptian Religion.
SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT. I33
CHAPTER XIV.
Art and Decoration.
During the Old Empire certain rules regulating drawing
were invented which were adhered to throughout the history
of Egypt. The stiff, unnatural appearance of all Egyptian
figures was due to strict observance of these rules, which
became binding upon artists and prevented any perfection
of art in the valley of the Nile.
Egyptian painting consisted of mere outline sketching.
The human body was first entirely drawn; then clothing was
added. The artists knew no more of anatomy than did the
physicians. They did not even follow each his own ideas,
but there was one established way of drawing the head, the
arms, the limbs, and all felt obliged to hold to this conven-
tional method. The extended arms show no elbows, the
fingers no joints. An endeavor to draw the body in profile
resulted in portions of it facing the spectator, other parts in
profile, and still other sharing the characteristics of both
positions. For many )ears the human figure, animals and
birds could only extend the foot or arm — in case of a person —
farthest away from the spectator, and each figure must be
shown with the right side to the front. In course of time
artists drew people of the lower classes with more freedom,
but it would have been deemed disrespectful to have portrayed
those of high rank in any but the conventional positions.
Thus, in a picture of a noble being served by a slave, the
latter might be drawn in a natural pose, while the noble still
retained the stiff, grotesque position of early times. Again,
the king was given colossal proportions, to indicate his power
and strength, while children may be distinguished only by
their tiny forms.
Side by side with this conventional school of art there
developed a realistic school that exercised greater freedom
with the human body. Tomb pictures remain wherein persons
are shown with their backs to the spectator, and in many posi-
tions not permissible according to established rules. However,
134 THE world's progress.
these paintings are invariably in the tombs of the lower classes.
It would not have been deemed fitting that such freedom
be used in decorating the tombs of nobles, or of persons of
high social standing. Artists of this school seem to have
been in disfavor in ancient Egypt. To be sure, in the matter
of portraying scenes where captives, slaves or the humble
people were gathered, artists of the conventional school drew
these with considerable degree of freedom and ease. In the
same picture the king, or noble, or high official was represented
according to the established custom.
All Egyptian drawing of human figures, birds and animals
is plain, and it is possible for any one today to read the stories
of long series of tomb pictures — studying them out, one by
one. However, when it came to representing a temple, a
house, or a garden, the desire to show every portion of it
resulted in some confusion. The artist was in doubt as to
how to portray it all. " In treating such an important and
complex object he wished if possible to show every part of
it; he therefore did not draw the house from the front nor
from the side, but made a picture of both sides together, and
when the house had an upper story with three chambers, he
put these three rooms close by also. He considered his duty
accomplished when he had placed all the details before the
spectator, but he did not care whether the spectator under-
stood how these details fitted together.
" We have to face another difficulty in order to comprehend
these pictures ; the Egyptian artist has no sense of proportion
between the different parts of the representation. If, for
instance, the king is standing in one of the rooms of the build-
ing in question, our artist would, regardless of truth, draw
that room ten times as large as all the others together, and
even in one picture he frequently changes his standard of
measurement." *
All pictures were painted, some only in outline, some
entirely. The interiors of tombs were made to assume a
gay appearance since tomb colors were always bright. Red,
the color of the sun, and blue, the sky reflected in the Nile,
were thought to be sacred.
Sculpture served two needs: it furnished statues of the
» Erman : Life in Ancient Egypt, 174.
SOCIAL LIFE IN 1:GYPT. 135
dead for relatives to worship, and statues of the kings and
gods, with the animals sacred to each, for the ornamentation
of the temples. Thus the scope of the sculptor was limited
in the beginning. Furthermore, the proportion, form, color
and expression of every statue was lixed by laws prescribed
by the priests. The aim of the artist was in every case to
show absolute repose.
When we realize that many of the surviving monuments
were chiseled from granite as hard as iron, upon which the
artist could work with only a small metal chisel, we view them
as monuments of the artist's untiring patience, as well as of
kingly greatness and statues of the gods. These artists also
knew how to make good use of poor material. In soft lime-
stone their task was easier ; scenes were frequently cut in this,
covered with stucco and then painted. Inexpensive statues
were often made in this way.
Art seems at first to have taken rapid strides in Egypt,
but after reaching a certain point, it was prevented by estab-
lished laws, enforced by the priesthood, from going farther.
So it deteriorated. Unfortunately we know little of the artists
who wrought these works and nothing of the training they
received.
Decorative art, as developed by the dwellers on the Nile,
has perhaps greater interest for the modern artist than their
paintings or statuary. The modern conventional school of
decorative art finds miuch to copy and adapt from patterns
which survive in Egypt. In the first place, the hieroglyphics
were in themselves decorative. They were often used as
friezes, and never do we find them cut across figures, as was
the case in Assyria. Among designs commonly called geo-
metrical, but in the beginning the representation of something
familiar, the zigzag line was popular. A double zigzag
formed little squares, and by various arrangements, many com-
binations were possible. The scroll was also a favorite decora-
tion. There was an old legend to the effect that the spiral
represented the wanderings of the soul, but just what con-
nection existed between the two — if indeed there had ever
been one — ^was lost in distant ages.
Coils, hooks, links and endless scrolls were used, and the
fret patterns were but modifications of the spiral. The
136 THK world's progress.
checkered design was originally worked out by the shepherds
and herdsmen who wove baskets and mats of rushes. The
source of one of the earliest imitations was the feather, with
its variety of forms. Only a few flowers were copied. The
lotus, papyrus, daisy, convolvulus, vine and palm were the
only ones used to any great extent. By far the most popular
of these was the lotus. This water lily has been worshipped
in many countries. The Egyptians did not regard it as a
national flower — by no means. It was considered the emblem
of immortality.
" The lotus is the symbol of * life,' ... of resurrec-
tion. Bouquets of it were presented to guests at funerals. It
was sometimes called the symbol of the Sun. * The solar
significance of the lotus is elementary and most important. A
text reads: The Sun, which was from the beginning, rises
like a hawk from the midst of its lotus bed. When the doors
of its leaves open in sapphire-colored brilliancy, it has divided
the night from the day.'
" A confessional chapter of the Book of the Dead closes
with the words: I am a pure lotus, issue of the field of the
Sun. . . . The Egyptian idea of the resurrection and of
a future life was connected with a worship of the creative and
reproductive forces of nature, which were conceived and wor-
shipped as solar in character and origin. It is the supposed
passage of the sun at night through a lower world, during
its return to the dawn of a following day which makes Osiris
— the Sun at night — the God of the lower world and of the
dead, hence himself represented as a mummy. As the God of
the resurrection, his special and emphatic character, he repre-
sents the creative energy of the Sun-god. Hence, the lotus
as attribute of Osiris is at once a symbol of the sun, of the
resurrection, and of creative forces and power. Since the
doctrine of a future life and a belief in a spirit world were
ever present to the Egyptian mind, we cannot too strongly
insist on the funeral symbolism of the lotus." '
This brief explanation of the lotus' significance given by
one who has made a detailed study of this particular Egyptian
symbol, helps us to understand its universal use. It was pictured
with the gods, given as offerings to them, employed as
* Goodyear: Grammar of the Lotus.
SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT.
137
capitals for columns, and had many significant uses. It has
been suggested that the bright yellow ovary stigmas of this
water-lily, with its rayed appearance, might have been thought
a symbol of the sun. As time went on, the flower developed
into a monstrosity, and became so conventionalized that it has
been difficult in many cases to determine what the artist intended
to represent.
The grape vine, with its fruit, was a popular decoration.
Ceilings were often painted golden yellow, with vine leaves
and bunches of grapes hanging down. In glazed work grapes,
convolvulus and thistle were used. Golden stars on a blue-
black background found favor as a ceiling decoration.
In prehistoric times, ideas of ornamentation were often
gained in curious ways. Jars of pottery were sometimes tied
with a string to support them while drying. The string
naturally left an impression in the clay. This suggested the
notion of twisting the string and so obtaining not only an
impression but a pattern. From this very illustration we
may realize how completely many origins of decoration have
been lost in obscurity.
CEILING DECORATION.
'38 TH^ WORU)'S PROGRESS.
CHAPTER XV.
Tombs and Buriai^ Customs
We have seen in a former chapter that the Egyptians
believed one to be composed of three parts : his earthly body,
his soul, or ba, and his ka, the ghostlike phantom that grew
up with him in life and after death experienced the same needs
that he had known while living. All three parts were essential
to the existence of any one of them. On this account the
Egyptians made every effort to perpetuate the body and to
provide necessities for the ka, lest the soul should wither up
and be no more. Granting the truth of these beliefs, all that
the Nile dwellers did in consequence of a faith in them was
logical and natural.
When an Egyptian was ill, a physician and one skilled in
magic were summoned. They did what they could to restore
him. When their efforts failed, they usually discovered that
from his birth it had been decreed that he would meet with
an early death, and in this ingenious way they maintained
their influence unimpaired.
Upon the death of a relative, all the women of the house
rushed into the street with disheveled hair, shouting loud
lamentations. In this way their loss was made public. Then
they returned and the body was sent to the embalmer.
Three methods of embalming were commonly employed.
The most costly method involved seventy days and absorbed
perhaps the total income of the year, unless the family was
wealthy. The second was less costly and required less time;
finally there was a comparatively inexpensive method which
had to satisfy the poor.
The vital organs and those parts of the body hardest to
preserve were removed. This was strictly necessary accord-
ing to later Egyptian ideas, yet so dreadful did they regard
any mutilation of the body that the men who performed this
task were intensely hated and considered as unclean. They
were not allowed to mingle with other classes, nor could one
SOCIAL UI?E IN EGYPT I39
rise out of his class. When they had done their work, they
were stoned away from the house.
The body was now put into a bath of chemicals to remain
for many days. When at last it was taken out, it was filled
with linen and sweet smelling powders and made to look as
lifelike as possible. Then it was wrapped in linen bands, the
quality of the linen used depending upon the purse of the
family.
" Each separate limb of the deceased was dedicated to a
particular divinity by the aid of holy oils, charms and
sentences ; a specially prepared cloth was wrapped round each
muscle, every drug and bandage owed its origin to some
divinity, and the confusion of sounds, of disguised figures,
and of various perfumes, had a stupefying effect on those who
visited this chamber. It need not be said that the whole
embalming establishment and its neighborhood was enveloped
in a cloud of powerful resinous fumes, of sweet attar, of last-
ing musk, and of pungent spices."
Prayers and magical charms were said, scarabs and amu-
lets enclosed, and finally the body was placed in a coffin so
constructed that it would stand upright, as though the person
were standing erect. It was then taken home, and lamenta-
tions were made for some days. These finally gave way to
festivals. Banquets were held in honor of the mummy, which
was placed near the table and offered portions of food. Some-
times mummies were kept in the home for a long time, and
were worshipped with the household gods. When at length
the day for burial came, the family and friends accompanied
the body across the Nile to the Necropolis. They took offerings
with them, — food, furniture, toilet articles, and some litera-
ture— certainly some pages from the Book of the Dead. All
the way across the river, the women wept. That the exhibi-
tion of grief might be sufficient, wailing women were hired
to increase the lamentations.
Seeing the sun which they worshipped disappear each
night in the west, the Egyptians grew to think that it went
to a mysterious country, the land of Osiris. In course of
time they located the land of the Blest in the west, and where-
ever possible, placed their tombs facing the west — ^the direc-
tion which the departed took for his long journey. All
I40 THS world's progress.
through the river ride the women cried : **' To the West ; to
the West!"
Upon reaching the place of burial, the priest performed
certain ceremonies. Then the mummy in its coffin, and the
jars containing the vital organs, were sealed up in the chamber
prepared to receive them.
There were always three essential parts to an Egyptian
tomb: the chapel, or room used by the relatives to worship
the deceased and bring him offerings ; the sepulchral chamber
which contained the mummy; and the serdab, or secret cell,
where images of the deceased were sealed up for the ka to
look upon, since the features of the earthly body were now
changed by death. This secret chamber was connected by
a small aperture with the chapel, in order that the smoke of
burning incense and proffered prayers might be the more
easily experienced by the Ka. On the west wall of the tomb
was the stela, or a false door, upon which was engraved the
name of the deceased, his parentage, titles, and a record of
the offerings made to his ka. In early times offerings alone
were made with no record of them, but as the people grew
more enlightened, they realized that a time must come when
even the best known would be forgotten and neglected. There-
fore they conceived the notion of enumerating the articles of
food contributed, believing that the ka would look upon the
record and be satiated through the ages.
Compared to the earthly abode, which was temporary, the
tomb was eternal; hence the care that was lavished upon the
tomb by the Egyptians. While yet young, a man began to
build his final resting place. If he died before it was com-
pleted, some relative supervised its completion, but in most
cases tombs left thus unfinished show signs of hasty con-
clusion. The survivor was chiefly interested in his own tomb,
and could give but passing attention to that of the departed.
In the Old Empire, tombs were constructed of brick
masonry. The mummy was placed some distance below the
brick work which was elevated a few feet above the ground.
During the Middle Empire, grotto tombs came into favor.
These were hewed out of the living rock. A large excava-
tion was made and chambers were sometimes formed b<"
raasonrv. sometimes hollowed from the rock itself. It was
SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT. I4I
during this period that pictures of food offerings were made
in addition to the food formerly offered alone. During the
New Empire tombs were generally cut in rocks, and now it
became customary to have the heart removed from the deceased
and placed in a jar. The idea of reward and punishment was
emphasized. " From the calm assurance of purely material
happiness which the earliest Egyptian loved to dwell on, there
developed a keener sense of the trials through which the soul
must pass, together with a higher ideal of the future life, a
strong conviction of the moral qualities and acts essential to
the justification of the individual. Later this spiritual degen-
erated into a reliance upon ritual and formulas in a merely
magical sense," *
The nature of the burial depended upon the means
of the family. The middle class interment was less pre-
tentious than that of the noble, and the poor appropriated
some old, neglected tomb, or paid for space in a public tomb.
Even in such cases, some offerings were made. The burial
of royalty was splendid, as tombs recently discovered in the
Valley of the Kings have attested. Furniture, receptacles,
toilet articles — even a boat and a chariot were in some cases
provided.
In the tombs of the wealthy were enclosed little Images
of servants, or '* answerers." To the unimaginative Egyptian,
the future world could only be a place, like his own Egypt,
where he would sow and reap, under conditions most favor-
able. Water would be plentiful, and work would be so easy
that it would be a joy to perform it. This satisfied the masses,
who knew only how to reap and sow. But the wealthy had
not been accustomed to cultivate the soil in this life and were
not pleased with the prospect of doing so through countless
ages. Lest such menial tasks be required of them in the realm
of Osiris they had with them these images of servants —
these answerers — who might respond when they were called
upon : " Here am I, thy servant." Thus the noble would
have his work performed by others, as it had always been.
Amulets and scarabs were also deposited with the mummy.
The amulets were charms supposed to bring good luck, and the
scarabs had a deeper significance. The word scarab means
J Blimmer : Essays on History, Religion and Art of Ancient Egypt.
I— 11
142 TH^ WORI.D'S PROGRKSS.
beetle. A certain kind of beetle deposited its eggs in the
sand. From the earth, in course of time, a fully developed
beetle would come forth. The Egyptians, who knew nothing
of insect life, believed the beetle, long since dead, had the
power of restoring itself to life anew. Hence the scarab was
an emblem of the resurrection and immortality. Just as the
cross is a symbol dear to the hearts of Christians, so, to the
followers of the Egyptian religion, the scarab was significant.
It was made of various kinds of stone, variously colored, and
was worn by the Egyptian during life, and buried with him at
death. During periods when religious revivals were strong,
large numbers of these emblems were produced; during ages
when greater indifference to religious matters were shown,
fewer seem to have been made. As little Greek vases have been
found in all lands where Greek merchantmen went, so the
Egyptian trade of antiquity can be traced by the little scarabs.
Large collections of them have been made in recent years, and
many are exhibited today in museums.
In the New Empire, when it became necessary to remove
the heart of the deceased, a sacred scarab was substituted in
its place. The idea prompting such action was that the heart
was sinful, and if removed, might not be able to testify against
its owner. The scarab, being a symbol of faith, might be of
some assistance.
A copy of the Book of the Dead was supplied the deceased
because it contained a list of the dangers his soul would
have to meet in journeying to the abode of Osiris. The
topography of the future world was included and all invoca-
tions to be uttered at different stages of the progress were
given. Only with a perfect knowledge of all these things could
the soul hope to reach the land of the blest. Advice was
given him about meeting the forty-two judges of the western
world, who judged him for forty-two sins. If his good deeds
outweighed his shortcomings, he remained forever with Osiris ;
otherwise he was transformed into some unclean animal, and
never knew the joys of eternal life.
It has been estimated that some 200,000,000 people died
in Upper Egypt during its active history and found a resting
place in the favorite strip of desert less than 450 miles in
length. Of course only the most substantial of the tombs
SOCIAIv IJFK IN KGYPT.
143
are preserved. The dryness of the country has helped to pre-
serve ancient monuments.
It is small wonder that to the very poor, whose huts have
always been in the Necropolis — the wealth concealed in tombs
has always been a strong temptation. Records reach through
the Middle and New Empires testifying that robbers pillaged
tombs for jewelry and gold, and today the Arab traffics con-
stantly in the spoils of the tombs — above which, in many
cases, he lives.
THE FUNERAL PROCESSION : THE WEAPONS AND JEWELS.
144 , THE world's progress.
CHAPTER XVI.
Excavations in Egypt.
We have spoken frequently of recent discoveries in Egypt,
and of objects found within old tombs. The question naturally
arises : Who makes these discoveries, and under what circum-
stances are the secrets of the tombs revealed ?
Modern excavations in Egypt are of recent date. In 1798
the military expedition of Napoleon Bonaparte drew attention
to Egyptian monuments. One of his soldiers, excavating for
some fortifications in the delta, discovered a stone covered with
an inscription, and this was preserved. Being found near the
mouth of the Rosetta river, it was called the Rosetta stone.
The stone had been inscribed during the reign of Ptolemy III.,
a Greek king. Because some of his subjects in Egypt were
Greeks and some Egyptians, he had caused the decree to be
inscribed (1) in Greek, (2) in hieroglyphics, (3) in demotic.
The Greek sentences were easily read, and since it seemed
probable that the other writing simply repeated the decree,
scholars set to work to decipher it. By 1832 they had prepared
an Egyptian grammar and vocabulary.
The earliest attempt at systematic investigation was begun
in 1822, when the government of Tuscany sent a number of
scholars into Egypt to study inscriptions, Chanipollian and
Rosellini were among them. In 1840 Germany sent out an
expedition under the leadership of Lepsius. This party began
work at Memphis, among the pyramids. In course of time the
Tuscan expedition supplied volumes of copied inscriptions and
explanatory material.
August Marietta went to Egypt In 1850 and was active
there until 1880. He made the first great discovery when
he came upon the burial place of the Apis bulls in Memphis.
Sixty-four tombs were found, together with amulets and
funeral ornaments. In 1857 he was made director of a new
museum, which was founded at Cairo. He received the
monopoly of the right to excavate in the vicinity of Thebes,
and while he allowed others to study what was unearthed under
SOCIAI. U?E IN EGYPT. I45
his direction, he would not permit them to do any excavating.
Maspero succeeded him as curator of the Cairo Museum. Into
this museum has been placed all the great finds of recent years
and here one who would make detailed study of ancient
Egypt must go.
As a result of his explorations in the valley of the Nile,
and of his personal knowledge of all gifts made to the Cairo
Museum, Maspero has prepared many books pertaining to the
life of the ancient Egyptians, His conclusions are drawn en-
tirely from the revelations of old monuments and remains, and
are of first importance.
Means have been provided by the Egyptian Exploration
Fund and by the Egyptian Research Account to make it pos-
sible for young students to undertake explorations in behalf of
public museums. Nothing found by those thus engaged can
be sold, whether publicly or privately, but must be presented
to some museum where people generally can have an oppor-
tunity to see and examine such objects. Reports of all dis-
coveries are published at the earliest possible moment. In
marked contrast to such generous principles have been the
undertakings carried on by many who have used recover.ed
objects for their personal profit, or have withheld knowledge
of them indefinitely.
W. M. Flinders Petrie, professor of Egyptology in Uni-
versity College, .London, took charge of the expedition sent
out by the Egypt Exploration Fund in 1884. Later he or-
ganized the Egyptian Research Account, in order to give young
students an opportunity to do active work themselves. In
late years Petrie has carried on his efforts alone. On the
basis of his observations, discoveries and knowledge, he has
prepared a history of Egypt, recently published. This is a
chronological account of royal tombs unearthed by him, rather
than a complete history of Egypt's development.
Gardner, Griffith and Naville have been sent out at differ-
ent times by the Egypt Exploration Fund, and have each pre-
pared reports of their finds.
The Tell el Amarna Letters should be mentioned with the
great finds in Egypt. In 1887-8, Arabs, who were carrying
oflf bricks for their houses, came upon a record chamber, con-
taining many hundred letters inscribed on bricks. They were
146 THE WORLD'S PROGRESS.
shown to experts who did not appreciate their value. They
were put in sacks and carried around, from one place to an-
other, with the hope of making something from their sale.
When many of them had been ground to powder and others
were hopelessly ruined, they were bought up by museums at
London, Berlin, St. Petersburg and Cairo. They have since
been translated and it appears that they belonged to the record
chamber of the capital built by Amenhotep IV., and called
by him the Horizon of the Solar Disk, As now translated, they
are found to be letters written during the peaceful reign of
Amenhotep III. and early in the reign of Amenhotep IV. ;
others recount the North Syrian war, and certain others, the
Palestine war. They reveal the condition of the empire during
the reign of the fanatical king who attempted to bring about
a religious revolution at home, while hostile tribes assailed
his empire on the east. The Tell el Amarna letters have done
much to clear up a portion of Egyptian history, previously not
understood. Their revelations have been supplemented by two
wonderful discoveries made within the last two years : the
discovered tomb of the parents of Queen Tiy — mother of
Amenhotep IV., in 1905, and early in 1907, the tomb of Queen
Tiy herself. These finds are so remarkable that we may well
give them brief consideration.
In recent years, Theodore M. Davis has undertaken syste-
matic excavations in the Valley of the Kings — the great Necro-
polis west of Thebes — for the benefit of the Cairo Museum.
This work has been directed by Archaeologist Quibell, main-
tained by the present Egyptian government.
Quoting from one who was present at the exciting mo-
ment when the tomb of Queen Tiy's parents was opened :
" Squeezing their way between the wall and rock ceil-
ing, M. Maspero and Mr. Davis were soon in the midst of
such a medley of tomb furniture that, in the glare of their light-
ed candles, the first effect was one of bewilderment. Gradually,
however, one object after another detached itself from the
shimmering mass, shining through the cool air, dust-free
and golden. Against the wall to the left stood a chair, and
beyond it a gilded coffin-cover lay upside down. In it was
a conventional mask that gleamed golden through dark veil-
ing; and the mummy whose head this mask had covered lay
SOCIAI. UfE IN EGYPT. 147
farther off, its body partly incased in gilded openwork. Against
the wall to the right leaned two ' Osiris beds,' flat surfaces
on which seed had been sown, which in sprouting, had out-
lined the figure of the god. Not far off, along the wall oppo-
site the door, stood a row of sentry-boxes, each containing
a statuette. In front of these rose the outermost case for a
mummy. To the left stood a bed. Nearer again lay a silvered
mummy case; and on this, and on a mummy beyond it, the
second in the tomb, a shaft of cold blue light struck down from
the outer day.
" By day-light then, mingled with the light of flickering
candle flames, the discoverers examined the second mummy.
By candle light alone they searched the first. Both had been
plundered by the thief of long ago. Throwing the mummy
cases hither and yon, he had taken from both mummies every-
thing of intrinsic value except a plate of gold closing the
aperture through which the heart of one had been removed
by the embalmers. Not a jewel, and only part of one necklace,
remained of all those with which the dead must once have
been bedecked. But if such trophies were lacking, others of
surpassing splendor and significance still packed the tomb-
chamber, from wall to wall. In the bottom of a mummy-case,
from which the thief had removed the cover, he had left a
cushion and a graceful alabaster vase. In another mummy-
case he had neglected an alabaster jar and the cover of an em-
broidery-box which he must have carried across the chamber to
a second bed, on which it now lay beside a superb gilded chair.
Near by, where the floor suddenly fell one deep step to a lower
level, he had thrown, among a multitude of sealed jars, half
of the gilded openwork casing which had encircled one of the
mummies. Near these jars again he had propped a coffin -cover
against one corner of the tomb. Here, too, he had left a
third bed and one of the most important finds in the tomb,
a chariot, the curving front and wheel-rims of which shone
through the darkness golden and scarlet.
" Except for its broken pole and the partly bare spokes of
its gilded wheels, this chariot was in perfect condition; with
the yoke already found in the corridor and a whip soon to be
discovered, it lacked nothing to be complete.
" Maspero studied ike hieroglyphics on their gleaming
148 THE wori^d's progress.
mummy-cases. * Tioua,' he read after a time ; and after further
study he went on, ' loua, hereditary prince, chief friend among
the friends of the sovereign.' There were the names of the
dead in the tomb ; and these dead, as Maspero therefore knew,
had been the parents of Tiy, a queen of the eighteenth dynasty,
whose changing of the national rehgion had once caused
such uproar and violence that the burial of her parents in
the sacred Valley of the Kings would have had to be hasty
and secret.
"The probable history of the tomb, accordingly, was clear.
During a period of unrest Queen Tiy, who wished a royal
burial for her father and mother, either chose an old tomb on
which the work had been abandoned or stopped work on one
which was being hewn out. In it she had placed the mummies,
with their funeral offerings, till the tomb could be reopened
and finished, or its contents transferred to a fitter resting
place. Quiet times had perhaps never returned during her
reign ; and however that may be, the tomb had been reopened,
not by Queen Tiy, but first by a robber, and now at last, by
modern archaeologists."^
Even more gratifying than the discovery just recounted
was the finding of Queen Tiy herself. Again we can get into
the spirit of the discovery best by reading the description
of an eye-witness :
"The excitement of entering a newly opened tomb is
naturally considerable; but when the first inscriptions to be
seen revealed the fact that the tomb of Queen Tiy, which had
been so long sought for, had been found, a glamour was added
to the moment which will not easily be forgotten by any of
the party. Inside the tomb chamber the gold covered coffin
and outer coffin, gleaming in the light of the electric lamps,
formed a sight of surprising richness. . . . The mummy
of the queen protruded from beneath the lip of the beautiful
coffin, which was made in human form. A vulture-headed
diadem of gold could just be seen passing around her head,
and one could see here and there the shining sheets of gold in
which the body was wrapped. There must have been thou-
sands of dollars worth of gold-foil and leaf in the chamber,
and the post-Akhnaton officials seem to have carried away
1 Century, Nov., '05.
SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT. I49
many of the portable gold ornaments, probably amounting to
many times that value. In a recess cut in the wall of thr
chamber stood four fine canopic vases of alabastrum, contain-
ing the queen's heart and intestines; and in one corner oi
the room there were several charming little pots and toilet
utensils of blue glazed ware. One of these, in the form of a
graceful girl carrying a pot upon her shoulder, is perhaps the
most perfect specimen of miniature figure-moldmg known in
Egypt. . . .
" After the tomb had been opened for a few hours, the
air, of course, became very much better, but its bad effects
on the antiquities was at once discernible. Even before the
first quick record had been finished, some of the scenes on the
gold showed signs of dropping to pieces. . . .
" It is to be hoped that most of the antiquities will be able
to travel to Cairo, though their fragile condition makes it
difficult to deal with them. Probably much of the rotten wood
work, and even some of the fine reliefs on the gold-leaf, will
have to be left in the tomb, which will be closed with Portland
cement."''
Greatest care has to be exercised to protect finds from the
Arabs. In spite of the vigilance of the government, pilfering
of the old Necropolis is constantly carried on. Every frag-
ment or curio which might bring profit is snatched up by
those in the employ of speculators.
Difficulties Confronting the Explorer,
Petrie has given in detail many of the difficulties which
have confronted him in his excavations among ancient Egypt-
ian tombs. On one occasion, in preference to living in an
Arabian village, he hunted out an old tomb, occupied the
three chambers above, where the deceased had been fed and
worshipped, and with his guide as a guard in an adjoining
tomb, found the place secure and comfortable,
A little account of his experience in the summer of 1888,
while excavating in the Fayoum, will give us some notion of
the perplexities that often beset the archaeologist. When-
ever possible, quotation is made from Petrie's own report.
The district he selected — the Fayoum — calls to mind Amenem-
2 Century, Sept., '07.
ISO THE WORLDS PROGRESS.
het III,, who first irrigated the region and thus added mater-
ially to the arable land of his country. To this particular sec-
tion Petrie was drawn, because, as he explains : " The ex-
ploration of the pyramids of this district was my main object,
as their arrangement, their dates, and their builders were yet
unknown."*
" So soon as we began to turn over the soil we found chips
of sandstone colossi ; the second day the gigantic nose of a
colossus was found, as broad as a man's body; then pieces of
carved thrones, and a fragment of inscription of Amenemhet
III. It was evident that the two piles of stone had been the
pedestals of colossal seated monolithic statues, carved in hard
quartzite sandstone, and brilliantly polished. These statues
faced northward, and around each was a courtyard wall with
sloping outer face and red granite gateway in the north front.
The total height of the colossi was about 60 feet from the
ground. The description of Herodotus, therefore, is accounted
for ; and it shows that he actually saw the figures, though from
a distance, as any person who visited them closely would not
have described them in such a manner."*
Petrie took his corps of native workmen next to Hawara,
for the pyramids there had not been opened in modern times.
Finding no trace of an entrance, they tunneled for many weeks
in the solid tomb. Finally a small opening was effected into
the old chamber of the tomb, and there, by the flickering light
of a candle, could be seen two empty sarcophagi. A modern
canal has saturated this part of the land and the explorer was
obliged to wade through mud to the tombs.
Quoting from his description of what was found : " The
pyramid had been elaborately arranged so as to deceive and
weary the spoilers, and it had apparently occupied a great
amount of labor to force an entrance." After explaining a
dozen ways they had tried and failed, he says : " At last the
way had been forced by breaking away a hole in the edge
of the glassy-hard sandstone roofing block, and thus reaching
the chamber and its sarcophagi. By a little widening of the
spoilers' hole I succeeded in getting through it into the cham-
ber. The water was up to the middle of my body, and so
» Petrie : Ten Years' Digging in Egypt, 81.
«Ibid. 82.
SOCIAIv UFE IN EGYPT. I51
the exploration was difficult; but the floor was covered with
rubbish and chips, which might contain parts of the funeral
vessels, and therefore needed searching. The first day I
got the coveted prize, a piece of alabaster vessel with the
name of Amenemhet III., proving finally to whom the pyramid
belonged. Still there was a puzzle as to the second sarcophagus,
which had been built up between the great central one and the
chamber side. On clearing in the chamber which led to the
sepulchre, however, a beautiful altar of oflferings in alabaster
was found, covered with figures of the offerings all named,
over a hundred, and dedicated to the king's daughter, Neferu-
ptah. . . . The chamber itself is a marvellous work;
nearly the whole height of it is carved out of a single block
of hard quartzite sandstone, forming a huge tank in which
the sarcophagus was placed. No trace of inscription exists
on either the walls or the sarcophagi ; and but for the funeral
furniture, even the very name would not have been recovered."*
Next they located what had in all probability been the old
Labyrinth. No trace of the building itself could be discovered,
but the vast extent showed it to have been larger than any
temple known in Egypt. Pliny, a Roman historian, has told
us that for centuries this Labyrinth served as a quarry for this
section of the country, and that a small town of quarrymen
lived near by.
In the cemetery of Hawara, Petrie made some explorations.
He succeeded in finding one tomb, which had been missed
by the spoilers — this naturally was the coveted find. It be-
longed to the twenty-sixth dynasty, a period of the decline of
Egyptian power. It was the tomb of a great noble, Horuta.
Standing deep under water, it was more difficult to manage
than usual.
" But the sarcophagus itself was most difficult to open.
The lid block was nearly two feet thick, and almost under
water. It was too heavy for us to move entire, so some weeks
were spent in cutting it in two. One piece was then raised,
but it proved to be the foot end; and though I spent a day
struggling with the inner coffins, sitting in the sarcophagus
up to my nose in water, I yet could not draw them out from
under the rest of the stone lid. So after some days the men
"Petrie : Ten Years' Digging in Egypt, 86.
152 rut world's progress.
raised that, enough to get one's head in between the under
side of it and the water; and then I spent another gruesome
day, sitting astride of the inner coffin, unable to turn my head
under the hd without tasting the bitter brine in which I sat."
At last the coffin was recovered. " Anxiously opening it, we
found a slight inner coffin, and then the body of Horuta him-
self, wrapped in a network of beads of lazuli, beryl, and silver,
this last decomposed. . . . Then came the last and longed-
for scene, for which our months of toil had whetted our appe-
tites— the unwrapping of Horuta. Bit by bit the layers of
pitch and cloth were loosened, and row after row of magnificent
amulets were disclosed, just as they were laid on in the distant
past. The gold ring on the finger which bore his name and
titles, the exquisitely inlaid gold birds, the chased gold figures,
the lazuli statuettes delicately wrought, the polished lazuli and
beryl and carnelian amulets finally engraved, all the wealth
of talismanic armory, rewarded our eyes with a sight which
has never been surpassed to archaeological gaze. No such
complete and rich a series of amulets has been seen intact
before ; and as one by one they were removed all their positions
were recorded, and they may now be seen lying in their original
order in the Ghizeh Museum.'"
We have noted repeatedly the various articles found within
the tombs, such as funeral furniture, vases, food, and amulets.
Some rather unusual disclosures were brought to light in this
old cemetery in the Fayoum. Children's toys, and their per-
sonal belongings were found entombed with their mummies.
One tomb of a much later date than yet mentioned — of Roman
Egypt indeed — contained one of the books of the Iliad. More
valuable than any of these were wreaths of flowers with which
the dead had been adorned. These were perfectly dried and
from them and accounts given us by Pliny, the ancient flora
of Egypt has been worked out by the patience and painstaking
of noted botanists.
•Petrie : Ten Years' Digging in Egypt, 93, ff.
DESCRIPTIONS OF EGYPT.
The Nile had overflowed its bed. The luxuriant corn fields
Artd blooming- gardens on its shores were lost beneath a bound-
less waste of waters ; and only the gigantic temples and palaces
of its cities (protected from the force of the water by dikes),
and the tops of the tall palm-trees and acacias could be seen
above its surface. The branches of the sycamores and plane-
trees drooped and floated on the waves, but the boughs of the
tall silver poplars strained upward, as if anxious to avoid the
watery world beneath. The full moon had risen ; her soft light
fell on the Libyan range of mountains vanishing on the western
horizon, and in the north the shimmer of the IMediterranean
could faintly be discerned. Blue and white lotus flowers floated
on the clear water, bats of all kinds darted softly through the
still air, heavy with the scent of acacia-blossom and jasmine;
the wild pigeons and other birds were at roost in the tops of
the trees, while the pelicans, storks and cranes squatted in
groups on the shore under the shelter of the papyrus reeds, and
Nile-beans. The pelicans and storks remained motionless,
their long bills bidder beneath their wings, but the cranes were
startled by the mere beat of an oar, stretching their necks, and
peering anxiously into distance, if they heard but the song of
the boatmen. The air was perfectly motionless, and the un-
broken reflection of the moon, lying like a silver shield or. the
surface of the water, proved that, wildly as the Nile leaps over
cataracts, and rushes past the gigantic temples of Upper Egypt,
yet on approaching the sea by dififerent arms, he can abandon
his impetuous course, and flow along in sober tranquility.
On this moonlight night in the year 528 b. c. a bark was
crossing the almost currentless canopic mouth of the Nile.
On the raised deck at the stern of this boat an Egyptian was
sitting to guide the long pole-rudder, and the half naked boat-
men within were singing as they rowed. . . .
153
154 THE world's progress.
As Phanes uttered these words they landed at the garden
wall, washed by the Nile. . . . The garden of Rhodo-
pis was as full of sound, and scent and blossom as a night in
fairy land. It was one labyrinth of acanthus shrubs, yellow
mimosa, the snowy gueldres rose, jasmine and lilac, red roses
and laburnums, overshadowed by tall palm-trees, acacias and
balsam-trees. Large bats hovered softly on their delicate wings
over the whole, and sounds of mirth and song echoed from the
river.
This garden had been laid out by an Egyptian, and the
builders of the Pyramids had already been celebrated for ages
for their skill in horticulture. They well understood how to
mark out neat flower-beds, plant groups of trees and shrubs in
regular order, water the whole by aqueducts and fountains,
arrange arbors and summer-houses, and even inclose the walks
with artistically clipped hedges and breed gold-fish in stone
basins. . . .
At noon on the following day the same boat, which, the
evening before, had carried the Athenian and the Spartan, stop-
ped once more before Rhodopis' garden. The sun was shin-
ing so brightly, so warmly and genially in the dark blue Egyp-
tian sky, the air was so pure and light, the beetles were hum-
ming so merrily, the boatmen singing so lustily and happily,
the shores of the Nile bloomed in such gay, variegated beauty,
and were so thickly peopled, the palm-trees, sycamores, bananas
and acacias were so luxuriant in foliage and blossom, and over
the whole landscape the rarest and most glorious gfifts seemed
to have been poured out with such divine munificence that a
passerby must have pronounced it the very home of joy and
gladness, a place from which sadness and sorrow had been
forever banished.
— An Egyptian Princess,
Descriptions oe Egypt. II.
The feast of Neith, called in Egyptian " the lamp-burning,"
was celebrated by a universal illumination, which began at the
rising of the moon. The shores of the Nile looked like two
long lines of fire. Every temple, house, and hut was orna-
mented with lamps, according to the means of its possessors.
DESCRIPTION O^ EGYPT. I55
The porches of the country houses and the Httle towers on the
larger buildings were all lighted up by brilliant flames, burning
in pans of pitch and sending up clouds of smoke, in which the
flags and pennons waved gently backward and forward. The
palm-trees and sycamores were silvered by the moonlight and
threw strange fantastic reflections onto the red waters of the
Nile — red from the fiery glow of the houses on their shores.
But, strong and glowing as was the light of the illumination,
its rays had not power to reach the middle of the giant river
where the boat was making its course and the pleasure party
felt as if they were sailing in dark night between two brilliant
days. Now and then a brightly lighted boat would come
swiftly across the river and seem as it neared the shore to be
cutting its way through a glowing stream of molten iron.
Lotus-blossoms, white as snow, lay on the surface of the
river, rising and falling with the waves and looking like eyes
in the water. Not a sound could be heard from either shore.
The echoes were carried away by the north wind and the meas-
ured stroke of the oars and the monotonous song of the
rowers were the only sounds that broke the stillness of this
strange night— a night robbed of its darkness. . . .
The pyramids lay on the left bank of the Nile, in the silver
moonshine, massive and awful, as if bruising the earth beneath
them with their weight; the giant graves of mighty rulers.
They seemed examples of man's creative power and at the
same time warnings of the vanity and mutability of earthly
greatness. For where was Chufu^ now — the king who had
cemented that mountain of stone with the sweat of his subjects?
Where was the long-lived Chafra^ who had despised the gods,
and, defiant in the consciousness of his own strength, was said
to have closed the gates of the temples in order to make him-
self and his name immortal by building a tomb of superhuman
dimensions? Their empty sarcophagi are, perhaps, tokens that
the judges of the dead found them unworthy of rest in the grave,
unworthy of the resurrection, whereas, the builder of the third
and most beautiful pyramid, Menkera,* who contented himself
with a smaller monument, and reopened the gates of the tem-
ples, was allowed to rest in peace in his coffin of blue basalt.
There they lay in the quiet night, these mighty pyramids,
*Khufu. *Khafre. •Mcnkurc
156 THB world's progress.
shone on by the bright stars, guarded by the watchmen of the
desert — the gigantic sphinx — and overlooking the barren rocks
of the Libyan stony mountains. At their feet slept the mum-
mies of their faithful subjects. . . .
But their boat sped on before the north wind ; they left the
city of the dead behind them and passed the enormous dikes
built to protect the city of Menes from the violence of the
floods ; the city of the Pharaohs came in sight, dazzlingly bright
with the myriads of flames \\ hich had been kindled in honor of
the goddess Neith, and when at last the gigantic temple of
Ptah appeared, the most ancient building of the most ancient
land, the spell broke, their tongues were loosed, and they burst
out into loud exclamations of delight.
It was illuminated by thousands of lamps ; a hundred fires
burned on its pylons, its battlemented walls and roofs. Burn-
ing torches flared between the rows of sphinxes which con-
nected the various gates with the main building, and the now
empty house of the god Apis was so surrounded by colored
fires that it gleamed like a white limestone rock in a tropical
sunset. Pennons, flags and garlands waved above the bril-
liant picture ; music and loud songs could be heard from below.
— Bgyptian Princess.
Descriptions oe Egypt. III.
By the walls of Thebes — the old city of a hundred gates —
the Nile spreads to a broad river ; the heights, which follow the
stream on both sides, here take a more decided outline ; solitary,
almost cone-shaped peaks stand out sharply from the level back-
ground of the many-colored limestone hills, on which no palm-
tree flourishes and in which no humble desert-plant can strike
root. Rocky crevasses and gorges cut more or less deeply into
the mountain range, and up to its ridge extends the desert,
destructive of all life, with sand and stones, with rocky cliffs
and reef-like, desert hills.
Behind the eastern range the desert spreads to the Red Sea ;
behind the western it stretches without limit, into infinity. In
the belief of the Egyptians beyond it lay the region of the
dead. . . .
In the fourteenth century before Christ — for to so remote
DESCRIPTION OF EGYPT. 1 57
a date we must direct the thoughts of the reader — impassable
limits had been set by the hand of man, in many places in
Thebes, to the inroads of the water; high dykes of stone and
embankments protected the streets and squares, the temples and
the palaces, from the overflow.
Canals that could be tightly closed up led from the dykes
to the land within, and smaller branch-cuttings to the gardens
of Thebes.
On the right, the eastern bank of the Nile, rose the buildings
of the far-famed residence of the Pharaohs. Close by the
river stood the immense and gaudy temples of the city of Amon ;
behind these and at a short distance from the Eastern hills —
indeed at their very foot and partly even on the soil of the
desert — were the palaces of the king and nobles, and the shady
streets in which the high narrow houses of the citizens stood
in close rows.
Life was gay and busy in the streets of the capital of the
Pharaohs. The western shore of the Nile showed quite a dif-
ferent scene. Here too there was no lack of stately buildings
or thronging men; but while on the further side of the river
there was a compact mass of houses, and the citizens went cheer-
fully and openly about their day's work, on this side there were
solitary splendid structures, round which little houses and huts
seemed to cling as children cling to the protection of a mother.
And these buildings lay in detached groups. . . .
And even more dissimilar were the slow-moving, solemn
groups in the road-ways on this side, and the cheerful, con-
fused throng yonder. There, on the eastern shore, all were in
eager pursuit of labor or recreation, stirred by pleasure or by
grief, active in deed and speech : here, in the west, little was
spoken, a spell seemed to check the footsteps of the wanderer,
a pale hand to sadden the bright glance of every eye, and to
banish the smile from every lip.
And yet many a gayly-dressed bark stopped at the shore,
there was no lack of minstrel bands, grand processions passed
on to the western heights ; but the Nile boats bore the dead, the
songs sung here were songs of lamentation, and the processions
consisted of mourners following the sarcophagus. We are
standing on the soil of the City of the Dead of Thebes.
Nevertheless even here nothing is wanting for return and
1—12
158 THK world's progress.
revival, for to the Egyptian his dead died not. He closed his
eyes, he bore him to the Necropohs, to the house of the em-
balmer, or Kolchytes, and then to the grave ; but he knew that
the souls of the departed lived on; that the justified absorbed
into Osiris floated over the Heavens in the vessel of the Sun ;
that they appeared on earth in the form they chose to take upon
them, and that they might exert influence on the current of the
lives of the survivors. So he took care to give a worthy in-
terment to his dead, above all to have the body embalmed so as
to endure long ; and had fixed times to bring fresh ofiferings for
the dead, of flesh and fowl, with drink-offerings and sweet-
smelling essences, and vegetables and flowers.
Neither at the obsequies nor at the offerings might the
ministers of the gods be absent, and the silent City of the Dead
was regarded as a favored sanctuary in which to establish schools
and dwellings for the learned.
So it came to pass that in the temples and on the site of the
Necropolis, large communities of priests dwelt together, and
close to the extensive embalming houses lived numerous
Kolchytes, who handed down the secrets of their art from father
to son.
Besides these there were other manufactories and shops.
In the former, sarcophagi of stone and of wood, linen bands
for enveloping mummies, and amulets for decorating them,
were made; in the latter, merchants kept spices and essences,
flowers, fruits, vegetables and pastry for sale. Calves, gazelles,
goats, geese, and other fowl were fed on inclosed meadow-plats,
and the mourners betook themselves thither to select what they
needed from among the beasts pronounced by the priests to be
clean for sacrifice, and to have them sealed with the sacred seal.
Many bought only a part of a victim at the shambles — the poor
could not even do this. They bought only colored cakes in the
shape of beasts, which symbolically took the place of the calves
and geese which their means were unable to procure. In the
handsomest shops sat servants of the priests, who received forms
written on rolls of papyrus which were filled up in the writing
room of the temple with those sacred verses which the departed
spirit must know and repeat to ward off the evil genius of the
deep, to open the gate of the under-world, and to be held righ-
teous before Osiris and the forty-two assessors of the subter-
ranean court of justice.
DESCRIPTION OF EGYPT. 1 59
What took place within the temples was concealed from
view, for each was surrounded by a high inclosing wall with
lofty, carefully closed portals, which were only opened when
a chorus of priests came out to sing a pious hymn, in the morn-
ing to Horus the rising god, and in the evening to Tum the
descending god. As soon as the evening hymn of fhe priests
was heard, the Necropolis was deserted, for the mourners and
those who were visiting the graves were required by this time
to return to their boats, and to quit the City of the Dead.
Crowds of men who had marched in the processions of the west
bank hastened in disorder to the shore, driven on by the body
of watchmen who took it in turns to do this duty and to protect
the graves against robbers. The merchants closed their booths,
then embalmers and workmen ended their day's work and
retired to their houses, the priests returned to the temples, and
the inns were filled with guests, who had come hither on long
pilgrimages from a distance, and who preferred passing the
night in the vicinity of the dead whom they had come to visit,
to going across to the bustling noisy city on the further shore.
The voices of the singers and of the wailing women were
hushed, e\^en the song of the sailors on the numberless ferry-
boats from the western shore of Thebes died away, its faint
echo was now and then borne across on the evening air, and at
last all was still.
Uarda.
Karnak.
" I am Karnak, and a thousand million men have lived and died
Since open have my gates been thrown for kings through them
to ride:
My massive walls have echoed to the tread of Egypt's hosts,
But now they are a skulking place for goblins and for ghosts."
" I stand once more among those mighty columns, which
radiate into avenues from whatever point one takes them. I
see them swathed in coiled shadows and broad bands of light.
I see them sculptured and painted with shapes of gods and
kings, with blazonings of royal names, with sacrificial altars
and forms of sacred beasts, and emblems of wisdom and truth.
100 THE wori^d's progress.
The shafts of these columns are enormous. I stand at the foot
of one — or of what seems to be the foot ; for the original pave-
ment lies buried seven feet below. ... It casts a shadow
twelve feet in breadth — such a shadow as might be cast by a
tower. Tj?e capital that juts out so high above my head looks
as if it might have been placed there to support the heavens.
It is carved in the semblance of a full-blown lotus, and glows
with undying colors — colors that are still fresh, though laid
on by hands that have been dust these three thousand years and
more. It would take not six men, but a dozen, to measure round
the curved lip of that stupendous lily.
" Such are the twelve central columns. The rest (one hun-
dred and twenty-two in number) are gigantic, too, but smaller.
Of the roof they once supported, only the beams remain. Those
beams are stone . . . carved and painted, bridging the
space from pillar to pillar, and patterning the trodden soil with
bands of shadow.
" Looking up and down the central avenue, we see at the
one end a flame-like obelisk ; at the other, a solitary palm against
a back-ground of glowing mountain. To right, to left, show-
ing transversely through long files of columns, we catch
glimpses of colossal bas-reliefs lining the roofless walls in every
direction. The king, as usual, figures in every group, and per-
forms the customary acts of worship. The gods receive and
approve him. Half in light, half in shadow, these slender,
fantastic forms stand out sharp and clear and colorless; each
figure some eighteen or twenty feet in height. They could
scarcely have looked more weird when the great roof was in
its place and perpetual twilight reigned. But it is difficult to
imagine the roof on and the sky shut out. It all looks right
as it is ; and one feels, somehow, that such columns should have
nothing between them and the infinite blue depths of
heaven. . . .
" How often has it been written, and how often must it be
repeated, that the great hall at Karnak is the noblest architec-
tural work ever designed and executed by human hands ? One
writer tells us that it covers four times the area occupied by the
cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris. Another measures it
against St. Peter's. All admit their inability to describe it;
yet all attempt the description. To convey a concrete image
DESCRIPTION OF EGYPT. l6l
of the place to one who has never seen it, is, however, as I have
said, impossible. If it could be likened to this place or that,
the task would not be so difficult; but there is, in truth, no
building in the wide world to compare with it. The pyramids
are more stupendous. The colosseum covers more ground.
The Parthenon is more beautiful. Yet in nobility of concep-
tion, in vastness of detail, in majesty of the highest order, the
hall of pillars exceeds them every one. This doorway, these
columns, are the wonder of the world. How was that lintel-
stone raised? How w^ere these capitals lifted? Entering
among those mighty pillars, says a recent observer, * you feel
that you have shrunk to the dimensions and feebleness of a fly.'
But I think you feel more than that. You are stupefied by the
thought of the mighty men who made them. You say to your-
self: * There were indeed giants in those days.'
" It may be that the traveler who finds himself for the first
time in the midst of a grove of WelUngtonia gigantea feels
something of the same overwhelming sense of awe and wonder ;
but the great trees, though they have taken three thousand
years to grow, lack the pathos and the mystery that comes of
human labor. They do not strike their roots through six
thousand years of history. They liave not been watered with
the blood and tears of millions. Their leaves know no sounds
less musical than the singing of the birds, or the moaning of
the night-w'ind as it sweeps over the highlands of Calaveras.
But every breath that wanders dow^n the painted aisles of
Karnak seems to echo back the sighs of those who perished in
the quarry, at the oar, and under the chariot-wheels of the
conqueror."
Memphis.
" And this is all that remains of Memphis, eldest of cities
— a few huge rubbish-heaps, a dozen or so of broken statues,
and a name ! One looks round and tries in vain to realize the
lost splendors of the place. Where is the Memphis that King
Mena^ came from Thinis to found — the Memphis of Chufu'^ and
Chafra,' and all the early kings who built their pyramid-tombs
in the adjacent desert? Where is the Memphis of Herodotus
and Strabo? Where are those stately ruins which, even in
»Menes. 'Khufu. 'Khafre.
i62 THE world's progress.
the middle ages, extended over a space estimated at half a
day's journey in every direction ? ' One can hardly believe
that a great city ever flourished on this spot, or understfc.nd how
it should have been effaced so utterly. Yet here it stood —
here where the grass is green, and the palms are growing, and
the Arabs build their hovels on the verge of the inundation.
The great colossus marks the site of the main entrance to the
Temple of Ptah. It lies where it fell, and no man has moved
it. That tranquil sheet of palm-fringed back-water, beyond
which we catch a distant glimpse of the pyramids of Gizeh,
occupies the basin of a vast artificial lake excavated by Mena.
" No capital in the world dates so far back as this or kept
its place in history so long. Founded four thousand years
before our era, it beheld the rise and fall of thirty-one dynasties ;
it survived the rule of the Persians, the Greek and the Roman ;
it was, even in its decadence, second only to Alexandria in
population and extent; and it continued to be inhabited up to
the time of the Arab invasion. It then became the quarry from
which old Cairo was built; and as the new city rose on the
eastern bank the people of Memphis quickly abandoned their
ancient capital to desolation and decay. . . .
" Memphis is a place to read about, and think about, and
remember; but it is a disappointing place to see. To miss it,
however, would be to miss the first link in the whole chain of
monumental history which unites the Egypt of antiquity with
the world of today. Those melancholy mounds and that heron-
haunted lake must be seen, if only that they may take their due
place in the picture gallery of one's memory."
— A Thousand Miles Up the Nile.
e;gyptian litdraturij. iOj
A Hymn to the God Ra.
Incline thine ear towards me, thou rising Sun,
Thou who dost enlighten the two lands with beauty;
Thou sunshine of mankind, chasing darkness from Egypt !
Thy form is as that of thy father Ra rising in the heavens.
Thy rays penetrate to the farthest lands.
When thou art resting in thy palace,
Thou hearest the words of all countries ;
For indeed thou hast millions of ears ;
Thine eye is clearer than the stars of heaven;
Thou seest farther than the Sun.
If I speak afar off, thine ear hears;
If I do a hidden deed, thine eye sees it.
O Ra, richest of beings, chosen of Ra,
Thou king of beauty, giving breath to all."
164 THE world's progress
? XtSi^ ^ ^ tn J
*■» « fl! -^ - *•
itil noKui
AN OLD KINGDOM BOOK
OF PROVERBS.
There is preserved in the Biblio-
theque Nationale at Paris, a papyrus
roll, which was discovered at Thebes
by M. Prisse, and is now distinguished
by his name. It was first described in
1657 by M. Chabas. The papyrus dates
from the beginning of the Middle King^
dom (Ca. 2100 b. c), and belongs to the rather extensive didactic litera-
ture of the Egyptians. According to the Egyptian custom, the words of the
book were put into the mouth of a sage of the olden time, Ptah-hotep by
name, who was said to have lived in the time of King Assa of the Fifth
Dynasty (Ca. 2600 b. c.)- There is no reason for doubting the correct-
ness of the tradition. Of course it is not to be supposed that all of the
proverbs really go back to Ptah-hotep. The author is stated to have been
110 years old, and his book opens with a remarkable description of old
age. It proceeds in a style which recalls the Proverbs of Solomon, the
Greek didactic poems, and even the homely "Poor Richard." It inculcates
obedience, diligence, patience, and other virtues belonging to an official
or servant. The Papyrus Prisse also contains the Proverbs of Kagemni,
vizier of King Snefru (Ca. 2900 b. c.) of the Fourth Dynasty.
Precepts of Ptah-Hotep.
The words of the Lord Prefect Ptah-Hotep, who lived In
the reign of Assa, King of Northern and Southern Egypt,
who liveth forever.
Thus saith the Lord Ptah-Hotep : O Lord Osiris, whose
feet are upon the crocodiles !
A man waxeth old, his strength decayeth, he getteth in
years, his youth fadeth away :
Day by day the heart of an old man fainteth and is
troubled :
EGYPTIAN UTERATURK. 165
His eyes see not, his ears hear not, his power is lessened
and abated:
Behold, his month speaketh not as of yore, his mind is
feeble, and reniembereth not the deeds of yesterday:
Yea, his whole body is afflicted, good is to him as evil, his
tongue savoreth no longer.
Alas, the old age of a man is full of misery, his nostrils
drink not the breath of heaven, his lungs wax feeble, he de-
lighteth neither to stand nor to be seated.
Who shall give unto my tongue authority to utter unto
the young men the counsels from of old ? or who vouchsafeth
unto me to declare the counsels received from on high ?
O Lord Osiris, let thy favor be poured out upon thy ser-
vant, and suffer that these evils be removed from those who
are unenlightened.
Then answered the Lord Osiris and said: Instruct them
in the counsels from of old ; for verily, wisdom from of old
maketh the weak strong ; knowledge giveth freedom to him
that heareth ; wisdom cries aloud, and the ear is not satisfied
with hearing.
Here beginneth the book of the wise sayings of the Lord
Prefect Ptah-Hotep, the first-born, the son of the King, the
well-beloved of the Lord :
That the ignorant and the foolish may be instructed in the
understanding of wisdom.
Wlioso giveth ear, to him shall these words be as riches;
To him who heedeth them not, to the same shall come
emptiness forever.
Thus speaketh he, giviug counsel unto his son.
Be not thou puffed up. with thy learning ; honor the wise,
neither withhold thou honor from the simple.
The gates of art are closed unto none ; whoso entereth
thereat, though he seeketh perfection, yet shall he not find it.
But the words of wisdom are hid, even as the emerald is
hid in the earth, and adamant in the rock, which the slave
diggeth up.
Yield unto him whose strength is more than thine, who
falleth upon thee in anger : be not thou inflamed, neither lay
thy hands upon him ; so shalt thou escape calamity.
i66 THE world's progress.
He is froward, it shall not profit thee to contend against
him ; be contained, and when he rageth against thee, oppose
him not ; so in the end shalt thou prevail over him.
If one rail against thee, and flout thee, answer him not
again, but be as one who cannot be moved; even so shalt
thou overcome him. For the bystanders shall declare that he
who, being provoked, holdeth his tongue, is greater than he
who provoketh ; and thou shalt be honored of those who have
understanding.
If thou do evil, being thereto commanded by one having
authority over thee, the gods shall not condemn thee.
Know the master, and the slave: be not froward: obey
and reverence him to whom is given dominion over thee:
None may know adversity, when it cometh, nor prosperity,
when it shall relieve him, for the will of fate is hid
from all :
But he that abuseth his servant shall be confounded, and
God who gave him authority shall suddenly take it away;
and g^eat shall be his overthrow.
Be diligent, and do more than thy master commandeth
thee ; for the slothful servant shall be discomfited, and he
that is idle shall be chidden.
See thou neglect not thy household; if thou find oppor-
tunity to increase thy wealth improve it ; business begetteth
business, but poverty is the lot of the slothful.
The wise traineth his child to walk devoutly and to serve
the Lord ; he maketh him obey his law, and do that which is
bidden ; so shall the love of the father be justified.
The son of a man is flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone ;
let not thy heart be cold towards him. But if he be froward,
and transgress thy law, and, being tempted of evil, turn him-
self from thy instruction, then do thou smite the mouth that
smote thee.
Delay not to bring the erring to obedience, and to chastise
the rebellious ; so shall he not stray from the path of right-
eousness, nor stumble among pitfalls.
Hide not thy path, let not thy way be hidden; though
thou stand in the council of thy master, declare the truth that
is in thee.
EGYPTIAN LITERATURE. I67
Be not as those who go backward, who eat the words of
their own mouth, lest peradventure they offend:
Be not like unto them; feigners, answering, He that per-
ceiveth the error of others, the same is wise: when the wise
man uplifteth his voice against error, deny him not, but keep
silence ; for surely none but the wise have understanding.
If thou be wise guard thy house: honor thy wife, and love
her exceedingly : feed her belly and clothe her back, for this
is the duty of a husband.
Give her abundance of ointment, fail not each day to
caress her, let the desire of her heart be fulfilled: for verily
he that is kind to his wife and honoreth her, the same hon-
oreth himself.
Withhold thy hand from violence, and thy heart from
cruelty ; softly entreat her and win her to thy way ; consider
her desires, and deny not the wish of her heart.
Thus shalt thou keep her heart from wandering; but if
thou harden thyself against her, she will turn from thee.
Speak to her, yield her thy love, she will have respect unto
thee ; open thy arms, she will come unto thee.
Blessed is the son who gives ear to the instruction of his
father, for he shall escape error.
Train thou thy son to obedience ; his wisdom shall be
pleasing unto the great.
Let his mouth have respect to thy sayings ; by obedience
shall his wisdom be established. Day by day shall his walk
be perfect ; but error shall be the destruction of fools. The
ignorant and the froward shall be overthrown, but knowledge
shall uplift the wise.
He that lacketh prudence and inclineth not his ear to in-
struction, the same worketh no good. He thinketh to dis-
cover knowledge in ignorance, and gain in that which profiteth
nothing ; he runneth to mischief, and wandereth in error,
choosing those things which are rejected of the prudent ; so
subsisteth he on that which perisheth, and filleth his belly
with the words of evil. Yea, he is brought to shame, seeking
to be nourished with whatsoever the wise hold in abomina-
tion, shunning profitable things, led astray by much foolish-
ness.
THE WORU)'S PROGRESS.
/f-X-
The Voyage of the Soul.
In the 15th chapter of "The Book of the
-^ft Dead " we find an account of the passage of the
^ soul in a boat across the firmament, to the abode
of the blessed.
This fable reappears in the religious writings
of other nations, as, for instance, in the Greek
story of Charon, ferrying departed spirits across the Stj'x, and in the
traditions of the ancient Mexicans. The soul is called by the Egyp-
tians Osiris, in connection with the proper name of the individual {N),
to indicate that the latter already partakes of the divine nature. Ra is
the sun-god, approaching the west. The following translation is by
P. Le Page Renouf :
Here is the Osiris N.
Come forth into Heaven, sail across the firmament and
enter into brotherhood with the stars, let salutation be made
to thee in the bark, let invocation be made to thee in the
morning bark. Contemplate Ra within his Ark, and do thou
propitiate his orb daily. See the fish in its birth from the
emerald stream, and see the tortoise and its rotations. Let
the oifender (the dragon) fall prostrate, when he meditates
destruction for me, by blows on his backbone.
Ra springs forth with a fair wind ; the evening bark speeds
on and reaches the Haven. The crew of Ra are in exultation
when they look upon him ; the Mistress of Life, her heart is
lelighted at the overthrow of the adversary of her Lord.
See thou Horus at the look-out at the bow, and at his
sides Thoth and Maat. All the gods are in exultation when
they behold Ra coming in peace to give new life to the hearts
of the Chu, and here is the Osiris W along with them.
[Litany.']
Adored be Ra, as he setteth in the land of Life.
3ail to thee, who hast come as Tmu, and hast been the creator of
the cycle of the sjods.
EGYPTIAN LITERATURE. l6g
Give thou delicious breezes of the 7iorth wind to the Osiris JV.
Hail to thee, who hast come as the Soul of souls, revered in
Amenta,
Hail to thee, who art above the gods, and who lightenest up Tuat
with thy glories.
Hail to thee, who comest in splendor, and goest around in thine
orb,
Hail to thee, who art mightier than the gods, who art crowned
in Heaven and King in Tuat,
Hail to thee, who openest the Tuat and disposest of all its doors,
Hail to thee, supreme among the gods, and weigher of words in
the nether world,
Hail to thee, who art in thy Nest, and stirrest the Tuat with thy
glory,
Hail to thee, the great, the mighty, whose enemies are laid pros-
trate at their blocks,
Hail to thee, who slaughterest the Sebau and annihilatest Apepi
(the dragon).
[After each invocation, the italicized line is repeated.]
Horus openetli : the Great, the Mighty, who divideth the
earths, the Great One who resteth in the Mountain of the
West, and brighteneth up the Tuat with his glories and the
Souls in their hidden abode, by shining into their sepulchres.
By hurling harm against the foe thou hast utterly de-
stroyed all the adversaries of the Osiris JV.
The Soul's Declaration of Innocence.
This declaration was to be made by the soul in the Judgment Hall
of Osiris in the presence of the council of forty-two gods. The heart
being weighed against the symbol of truth and found correct was then
restored to the deceased who entered upon the life of the blessed.
" O ye lyords of ^Truth } I have brought you truth.
I have not privily done evil against mankind.
I have not afflicted the miserable.
I have not told falsehoods.
I have had no acquaintance with sin.
I have not made tlie laboring man do more than his daily task.
I have not been idle.
I have not been intoxicated.
I/O
THl^ WORU)'S PROGRESS
I have not been immoral.
I have not calumniated a slave to his master.
I have not caused hunger.
I have not made to weep.
I have not murdered.
I have not defrauded.
" I have not eaten the sacred bread in the temples.
I have not cheated in the weight of the balance.
I have not withheld milk from the mouths of sucldings^
I have not slandered any one.
I have not netted sacred birds.
I have not caught the fish which typify them.
I have not stopped running water.
I have not robbed the gods of their offered haunches.
I have not stopped a god from his manifestation.
I have made to the gods the offerings that were their due.
I have given food to the hungr>', drink to the thirsty, and clothes
to the naked.
I am pure I I am pure I '*
WEIGHING THK HEART IN THE JUDGMENT HALL OF OSIRIS.
EGYPTIAN LITERATURE. I7I
THE ADVENTURES OF THE EXILE SANEHAT.*
(2000 B.C.)
The fact that three copies of this tale have been found indicates thai
it was popular. Sanehat was a high official, and probably a member of
the royal family ; but on the death of King Amenemhet, the founder
of the twelfth dynasty, Sanehat, fearing for his life, fled to Syria and
lived there many years. In his old age he desired to return, that he
might die in his native land. The narrative was probably prepared for
inscription on the wall of his tomb. The translation is from W. M.
Flinders Petrie's " Egyptian Tales."
IN the thirtieth year, the month Paophi, the
seventh day, the god entered
his horizon, the King vSehotep-
abra flew up to heaven and
joined the sun's disc, the fol-
lower of the god met his maker.
The palace was silenced, and in
mourning, the great gates were
closed, the courtiers crouching
on the ground, the people in
hushed mourning.
His majesty had sent a great
army with the nobles to the
land of the Temehu (Libya), his
son and heir, the good god,
King Usertesen,^ as their leader.
Now he was returning, and had
brought away living captives and all kinds of cattle without
end. The councillors of the palace had sent to the West to
let the king know the matter that had come to pass in the
inner hall. The messenger was to meet him on the road, and
reach him at the time of evening: the matter was urgent.
*' A hawk had soared with his followers." Thus said he, not
to let the army know of it. Even if the royal sons who
commanded in that army sent a message, he was not to speak
to a single one of them.
But I was standing near, and heard his voice while he was
speaking. I fled far away, my heart beating, my arms fail-
' More correctly rendered as Sinuhe.
■ Sesostris.
»72 THE world's progress.
ing, trembling had fallen on all my limbs. I turned about in
running to seek a place to hide me, and I threw myself be-
tween two bushes, to wait while they should pass by. Then
I turned me toward the south, not wishing to come into this
palace — for I knew not if war was declared — nor even think-
ing a wish to live after this sovereign. I turned my back
to the sycamore, I reached Shi-Seneferu, and rested on the
open field. In the morning I went on and overtook a man,
who passed by the edge of the road. He asked of me me^^cy,
for he feared me. By the evening I drew near to Kher-ahau
(Cairo) and I crossed the river on a raft without a rudder. Car-
ried by the west wind, I passed over to the east to the quarries
of Aku and the land of the goddess Herit, mistress of the red
mountain. Then I fled on foot, northward, and reached the
walls of the prince, built to repel the Sati. I crouched in a
bush for fear of being seen by the guards, changed each day,
who watch on the top of the fortress. I took my way by
night, and at the lighting of the day I reached Peten, and
turned me toward the valley of Kemur. Then thirst hasted
me on ; I dried up, and my throat narrowed, and I said,
" This is the taste of death."
When I lifted up my heart and gathered strength, I heard
a voice and the lowing of cattle. I saw men of the Sati, and
one of them — a friend unto Egypt — knew me. He gave me
water and boiled milk, and I went with him to his camp ;
they did me good, and one tribe passed me on to another. I
passed on to Sun, and reached the land of Adim (Edom).
When I had dwelt there half a year Amu-an-shi — who is
the prince of the Upper Tenu — sent for me and said : ' ' Dwell
thou with me that thou mayest hear the speech of Egypt. ' '
He said thus for that he knew of my excellence, and had
heard tell of my worth, for men of Egypt who were there
with him oore witness of me. Behold he said to me, "For
what cause hast thou come hither ? Has a matter come to
pass in the palace ? Has the king of the two lands, Sehetep-
abra, gone to heaven? What has happened about this is
not known." But I answered with concealment, and said,
" When I came from the land of the Temehu, and my desires
were there changed in me, if I fled away it was not by reason
Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y.
Harem Window and Court.
EGYPTIAN LITERATURE. 173
of remorse that I took the way of a fugitive; I have not
failed in my duty, my mouth has not said any bitter words, I
have not heard any evil counsel, my name has not come into
the mouth of a magistrate. I know not by what I have been
led into this land." And Amu-an-shi said, "This is by the
will of the god (King of Egypt), for what is a land like, if it
know not that excellent god, of whom the dread is upon the
lands of strangers, as they dread Sekhet in a year of pesti-
lence?" I spake to him, and replied, "Forgive me, his son
now enters the palace, and has received the heritage of his
father. He is a god who has none like him, and there is none
before him. He is a master of wisdom, prudent in his de-
signs, excellent in his decrees, with good-will to him who
goes or who comes ; he subdued the land of strangers while
his father yet lived in his palace, and he rendered account of
that which his father destined him to perform. A king, he has
ruled from his birth ; he, from his birth, has increased births,
a sole being, a divine essence, by whom this land rejoices to
be governed. He enlarges the borders of the South ; but he
covets not the lands of the North ; he does not smite the Sati,
nor crush the Nemau-shau. If he descends here, let him
know thy name, by the homage which thou wilt pay to his
majesty. For he refuses not to bless the land which obeys
him."
And he replied to me, " Egypt is indeed happy and well
settled ; behold thou art far from it, but whilst thou art with
me I will do good unto thee." And he placed me before his
children, he married his eldest daughter to me, and gave me
the choice of all his land, even among the best of that which
he had on the border of the next land. It is a goodly land ;
laa is its name. There are figs and grapes; there is wine
commoner than water ; abundant is the honey, many are its
olives ; and all fruits are upon its trees ; there is barley and
wheat, and cattle of kinds without end. This was truly a
great thing that he granted me, when the prince came to
invest me, and establish me as prince of a tribe in the best of
his land. I had my continual portion of bread and of wine
each day, of cooked meat, of roasted fowl, as well as the wild
game which I took, or which was brought to me, besides what
1—13
174 THE WORU)'S PROGRESS.
my dogs captured. They made me much butter, and prepared
milk of all kinds. I passed many years, the children that I
had became great, each ruling his tribe. When a messenger
went or came to the palace, he turned aside from the way to
come to me ; for I helped every man. I gave water to the
thirsty, I set on his way him who went astray, and I rescued
the robbed. The Sati who went far, to strike and turn back
the princes of other lands, I ordained their goings ; for the
Prince of the Tenu for many years appointed me to be general
of his soldiers. In every land which I attacked I played the
champion, I took the cattle, I led away the vassals, I carried
oflf the slaves, I slew the people, by my sword, my bow, my
marches and my good devices. I was excellent to the heart
of my prince ; he loved me when he knew my power, and set
me over his children when he saw the strength of my arms.
A champion of the Tenu came to defy me in my tent : a
bold man without equal, for he had vanquished the whole
country. He said, "Let Sanehat fight with me;" for he
desired to overthrow me, he thought to take my cattle for his
tribe. The prince counseled with me. I said, " I know him
not I certainly am not of his degree, I hold me far from his
place. Have I ever opened his door, or leaped over his fence ?
It is some envious jealousy from seeing me ; does he think
that I am like some steer among the cows, whom the bull
overthrows ? If this is a wretch who thinks to enrich himself
at my cost, not a Bedawi fit for fight, then let us put the
matter to judgment. Verily a true bull loves battle, but a
vain-glorious bull turns his back for fear of contest ; if he has
a heart for combat, let him speak what he pleases. Will God
forget what he has ordained, and how shall that be known?"
I lay down ; and when I had rested I strung my bow, I made
ready my arrows, I loosened my dagger, I furbished my
arms.
At dawn the land of the Tenu came together; it had
gathered its tribes and called all the neighboring people ; it
spake of nothing but the fight. Each heart burnt for me,
men and women crying out ; for each heart was troubled for
me, and they said, ** Is there another strong one who would
fight with him ? Behold the adversary has a buckler, a battle-
EGYPTIAN LITERATURE. 175
axe, and an armful of javelins." Then I drew him to the
attack ; I turned aside his arrows, and they struck the ground
in vain. One drew near to the other, and he fell on me, and
then I shot him. My arrow fastened in his neck, he cried out,
and fell on his face : I drove his lance into him, and raised my
shout of victory on his back. Whilst all the men of the land
rejoiced, I, and his vassals whom he had oppressed, gave
thanks unto Mentu (the god of war). This prince, Amu-an-shi,
embraced me. Then I carried off his goods and took his
cattle, that which he had wished to do to me, I did even so
unto him ; I seized that which was in his tent, I spoiled his
dwelling. As time went on I increased the richness of my
treasures and the number of my cattle. . . .
[But at last the exile desired to return to his native land,
and sent a petition to the King of Egypt, asking permission.]
Then the majesty of King Kheper-ka-ra, the blessed,
spake upon this my desire that I had made to him. His
majesty sent unto me with presents from the king, that he
might enlarge the heart of his servant, like unto the province
of any strange land ; and the royal sons who are in the palace
addressed themselves unto me.
Copy of the decree which was brought to lead me back into Egypt.
"The Horus, life of births, lord of the two crowns, King
of Upper and I/)wer Egypt, Kheper-ka-ra, son of the Sun,
Amen-em-hat, ever living imto eternity. Order for the follower
Sanehat. Behold this order of the king is sent to thee to instruct
thee of his will.
" Now, although thou hast gone through strange lands from
Adim to Tenu, and passed from one country to another at the
wish of thy heart — behold, what hast thou done, or what has been
done against thee, that is amiss ? Moreover, thou reviledst not ;
but if thy word was denied, thou didst not speak again in the
assembly of the nobles, even if thou wast desired. Now, there-
fore, that thou hast thought on this matter which has come to
thy mind, let thy heart not change again; for this thy Heaven
(queen), who is in the palace is fixed, she is flourishing, she is
enjoying the best in the kingdom of the land, and her children
are in the chambers of the palace.
'* I^eave all the riches that thou hast, and that are with thee.
176 THE world's progress.
altogether. When thou shalt come into Egypt behold the palace,
and when thou shalt enter the palace, bow thy face to the ground
before the Great House ; thou shalt be chief among the com-
panions. And day by day behold thou growest old ; thy vigor is
lost, and thou thinkest on the day of burial. Thou shalt see
thyself come to the blessed state, they shall give thee the band-
ages from the hand of Tait, the night of applying the oil of em-
balming. They shall follow thy funeral, and visit the tomb on
the day of burial, which shall be in a gilded case, the head
painted with blue, a canopy of cypress wood above thee, and oxen
shall draw thee, the singers going before thee, and they shall
dance the funeral dance. The weepers crouching at the door of
thy tomb shall cry aloud the prayers for oflferings : they shall slay
victims for thee at the door of thy pit ; and thy pyramid shall be
carved in white stone, in the company of the royal children.
Thus thou shalt not die in a strange land, nor be buried by the
Amu ; thou shalt not be laid in a sheep-skin when thou art
buried ; all people shall beat the earth, and lament on thy body
when thou goest to the tomb."
When this order came to me, I was in the midst of my
tribe. When it was read unto me, I threw me on the dust, I
threw dust in my hair ; I went around my tent rejoicing and
saying, '' How may it be that such a thing is done to the ser-
vant, who with a rebellious heart has fled to strange lands ?
Now with an excellent deliverance, and mercy delivering me
from death, thou shalt cause me to end my days in the palace. ' '
I made a feast in laa, to pass over my goods to my chil-
dren. My eldest son was leading my tribe, all my goods
passed to him, and I gave him my corn and all my cattle, my
fruit, and all my pleasant trees. When I had taken my road
to the south, and arrived at the roads of Horus, the officer
who was over the garrison sent a messenger to the palace to
give notice. His majesty sent the good overseer of the
peasants of the king's domains, and boats laden with presents
from the king for the Sati who had come to conduct me to
the roads of Horus. I spoke to each one by his name, and I
gave the presents to each as was intended. I received and I
returned the salutation and I continued thus until I reached
the city of Thetu (Thebes).
EGYPTIAN UTERATURE. 177
When the land was brightened, and the new day began,
four men came with a summons for me ; and the four men
went to lead me to the palace. I saluted with both my hands
on the ground ; the royal children stood at the courtyard to
conduct me : the courtiers who were to lead me to the hall
brought me on the way to the royal chamber.
I found his majesty on the great throne in the hall of pale
gold. Then I threw myself on the ground ; this god, in
whose presence I was, knew me not. He questioned me
graciously, but I was as one seized with blindness, my spirit
fainted, my limbs failed, my heart was no longer in my
bosom, and I knew the difference between life and death.
His majesty said to one of the companions, " Lift him up, let
him speak to me. ' '
The royal children were brought in, and his majesty said
to the queen, *' Behold, Sanehat has come as an Amu, whom
the Sati have produced."
She cried aloud, and the royal children spake with one
voice, saying before his majesty, "Verily it is not so, O
king, my lord. ' ' Said his majesty, " It is verily he. ' ' Then
they brought their collars, and their wands, and their sistra *
in their hands, and displayed them before his majesty ; and
they sang —
" May thy hands prosper, O king: ;
May the ornaments of the Lady of Heaven continue.
May the goddess Nub g:ive life to thy nostril ;
May the mistress of the stars favor thee, when thou sailest south
and north.
All wisdom is in the mouth of thy majesty ;
Thy uraeus f is on thy forehead, thou drivest away the miserable.
Thou art pacified, O Ra, lord of the lands ;
They call on thee as on the mistress of all.
Strong is thy horn. Thou lettest fly thine arrow.
Grant the breath to him who is without it ;
* The sistrum was a musical rattle, usually consisting of a thin
oval metal band, crossed with metal rods and having a handle. See
cut, p. 39.
•f The serpent, with raised, projecting head, which was an emblem
of sovereignty.
178 THS WOIUW)*S PROGRESS
Grant good things to this traveller, Sanehat the Pedti, bora in
the land of Egypt,
Who fled away from fear of thee,
And fled this land from thy terrors.
Does not the face grow pale, of him who beholds thy counte-
nance ;
Does not the eye fear, which looks upon thee ?"
Said his majesty, *' Let him not fear, let him be freed from
terror. He shall be a Royal Friend amongst the nobles ; he
shall be put within the circle of the courtiers. Go ye to the
chamber of praise to seek wealth for him."
When I went out from the palace, the royal children
offered their hands to me ; we walked afterwards to the Great
Gates.
Years were removed from my limbs: I was shaved, and
polled my locks of hair ; the foulness was cast to the desert
with the garments of the Nemau-shau. I clothed me in fine
linen, and anointed myself with the fine oil of Egypt ; I laid
me on a bed. I gave up the sand to those who lie on it ; the
oil of wood to him who would anoint himself therewith.
There was given to me the mansion of a lord of serfs, which
had belonged to a royal friend. There many excellent things
were in its buildings ; all its wood was renewed. There were
brought to me portions from the palace, thrice and four times
each day ; besides the gifts of the royal children, always,
without ceasing. There was built for me a pyramid of stone
amongst the pyramids. The overseer of the architects mea-
sured its ground; the chief treasurer wrote it; the sacred
masons cut the well ; the chief of the laborers on the tombs
brought the bricks ; all things used to make strong a building
were there used. There were given to me peasants ; there was
made for me a garden, and fields were in it before my man-
sion, as is done for the chief royal friend. My statue was
inlaid with gold, its girdle of pale gold ; his majesty caused it
to be made. Such honor is not done to a man of low degree.
May I be in the favor of the king until the day shall come
of my death.
THE SONG OF THE
HARPER.
(Sixteenth century B.C.) .
The Song of the Harper was
found in the tomb of the priest
Neferhotep, near Thebes. It was
designed to be sung on the anni-
versary of his death. He is shown
sitting with his wife, son and daugh-
ter, while the harper chants. Other
copies of this song have come down to us. Ra or Re is the general appel-
lation of the Sun-god; Ttim or Tmu denotes the Sun setting; Shu is the
light of the Sun in its life-giving function.
Neferhotep, great and blessed, sleepeth ; we protect his sleep.
Since the day when Ra began his race, and Turn hastened to its
ending, fathers have gone down to death, and children .have
arisen in their place.
Even as Ra has his birth in the morning, fathers beget sons ;
Even as Turn begetteth night, mothers conceive and bring forth ;
The breath of the morning is in a man's nostrils ;
Man that is born of a woman vanisheth when his race is run.
Holy Father, vouchsafe that the day return with blessing ;
Smell thou the fragrant oils that we pour on thy altars, receive
the flowers that we bring for an ofi"ering.
Lo, thy sister dwelleth in thy heart as in a temple ;
Give these lotus flowers into her arms, place them in her bosom ;
Lo, she sitteth at thy right hand ; let the harp and the sound of
singing be pleasing unto thee, and drive sorrow away.
Rejoice even unto the day when we, pilgrims, enter Amenti, wel-
comed by him who went before us.
Vouchsafe, O Lord, that the day come quickly;
Pure of heart and deed was he whom we loved:
179
i8o THE wori^d's progress.
The life of earth passeth away, even so passed he away ;
Behold, he was, and he is not, and no man knoweth his place.
So hath it been, since Ra went forth, O Man, and so shall it be
forever.
The eyes of a man are opened, and are quickly closed again.
His soul drinketh of the sacred waters, he drinketh with them
that are gone of the waters of the River of Life.
Give unto the poor, who cry to thee when the harvest faileth ; so
shall thy name be magnified forever.
And to the feast of thy sacrifice multitudes shall come, worship-
ping;
And the priest, clothed with a panther's skin, shall pour out
wine unto thee ;
And shall offer cakes, and sing songs before thy altars.
In that day when thy servants stand before Ra, the Sun-god.
Shu shall bring forth the harvest in its season.
And glory shall be thine, but destruction shall overtake the wicked.
Return quickly, O Neferhotep, let the day of thy honor return :
L,o, the works which thou didst upon earth, thou didst leave them
in the day of thy going ;
Rich wast thou, but of thy riches only these ashes are left.
In the day of thy going thou tarriedst not, nothing didst thou
save in that day :
Yea, though a man have much grain, yet the day of his poverty
shall come ;
Death regardeth not his riches ; Death heedeth not the pride of a
man.
Friends, the day of your going shall come ; let your hearts have
understanding.
Whither ye go, thence shall ye not return forever.
The upright man shall prosper, but the transgressor shall perish.
Be ye just, for the just man shall be blessed.
But neither the brave man, nor he that feareth, nor he that hath
friends, nor the forsaken one.
None shall escape the grave, no man small prevail against Death.
Vouchsafe unto us, therefore, of thine abundance, and be thou
blessed forever of Isis.
PRESENT-DAY EGYPT
A1.EXANDRIA.
Where East and West Meet
LEXANDRIA is the great commercial center of
the southern Mediterranean. Approached from
the sea, the coast is so level that the city is not
visible until the harbor is almost reached.
Modern docks and warehouses are crowded
along the shore.
In spite of its modern appearance, Alexandria is an old
city, founded by Alexander the Great, in 332 B. C. He
evinced his usual insight and good judgment in the site
chosen, it being sufficiently far west to escape the deposits
brought down by the Nile and carried to sea by its various
outlets. The only important city of all those founded by the
great conqueror, Alexandria became a center of culture and
education. Scholars and men of genius were encouraged to
come here by the Ptolomies, who were determined to make
the place a second Athens. A museum was founded and a
library established, some 900,000 rolls of manuscript being
accumulated. This we may feel sure embraced the wealth
of ancient learning.
When the city was besieged by the Romans in the time
of Caesar, this priceless collection of books was destroyed.
The loss to the future was irreparable. However, an earnest
effort was put forth to replace as many as possible of the
writings, and for years scribes copied precious rolls sent them
from other educational centers and from private collections.
Indeed, it was plainly hinted by those best informed that the
originals were never returned to rightful owners, but that
copies were invariably returned and the original kept to grace
the public library. When Omar overcame Egypt in the
seventh century, he proclaimed the Koran sufficient for all,
saying that it included whatever wisdom men needed. Where-
upon he commanded the destruction of this second library.
1 82 THE world's progress.
It is recorded that the contents were distributed among four
thousand pubhc baths of Alexandria and that fires were kept
burning for six months before the books were consumed.
Lovers of antiquity can never cease to regret these two wanton
wastes of ancient hterature.
Pompey's Pillar* may be seen towering high above the city
as one draws near. While its significance is not absolutely
proved, nevertheless it is thought to have been erected in honor
of Diocletian in the third century. It is made of red granite
and was originally crowned by a statue. Aside from it and
the catacombs, there is little to suggest the venerable age of
the place. The catacombs were used here, as in Rome, by
early Christians for interment.
In many respects Alexandria is like certain European
cities. Its streets are well paved, it has broad avenues in its
newer sections, and the local activities center around a great
public square, named after Mohammet Ali, who loved the
place and did much to beautify it. Except for the ruinous
policy of Said and Ismail, who involved their country in heavy
debt, Alexandria would be a very wealthy metropolis, for its
yearly shipment of cotton alone is nearly one million bales.
Nevertheless, while as conspicuous a commercial center as
Liverpool, its commerce is slight compared to what it was
before shipping interests were diverted around the Cape of
Good Hope.
In no other locality can one see such a meeting of the
nations. All languages are heard in a general babel around
the harbor and in the streets. Numbering about three hundred
and forty thousand people, its population includes Asiatics and
Europeans of every description, who offer a striking contra-
diction to Kipling's couplet:
"For East is East, and West is West,
And never the twain shall meet."
Cairo.
The ride from Alexandria to Cairo leads across the level
plains of the delta. Fields of grain, occasional palms, scatter-
* The shaft is erroneously associated with Pompey.
PRESENT-DAY EGYPT. I83
ing villages of mud huts, and the ever-evident canals make up
the landscape. As one draws near the city a sight of the
Pyramids is gained; then the suburbs of Cairo appear.
Unlike Alexandria, Cairo is a comparatively modem city.
The seaport was twelve hundred years old before a stone of
Cairo had been set in place. Now having a population of
about six hundred thousand, it, too, shows great diversity of
people. While the Arabs make up the bulk of the inhabitants,
representatives of all countries and climes are seen. The
domed mosques stand on every hand, monuments to the
teachings of Mohammed.
Much as Venice attracts artists by its lavish display of
color, Cairo also offers visions for one who is skillful with
the brush. Its sapphire skies, gorgeous sunsets with their
marvellous after-glow-, the gleaming sands of the desert and
Pyramids turned to gold in the setting sun, are intoxicating.
It is the land of Arabian Nights, and slight imagination is
required to make the visitor fancy himself back in story land.
Strange and unfamiliar sights greet him everywhere; even
the odor of the oriental city, incapable of description, is
present when darkness has eliminated many of the scenes,
and slumber has lessened many of the sounds.
Although few spend much time in Alexandria, all visitors
to Egypt devote as many days or weeks as may be possible
to Cairo. From there one may visit the great Pyramids,
going by train if limited in point of time; going by donkey
or camel if fond of following historic customs. Here, too,
one starts upon the trip up the Nile, without which any visit
to Egypt would be incomplete. The bazaars afford much
entertainment for the sojourner in Cairo. Even those who
for some reason have made this city their abode for a pro-
tracted time never tire of the street scenes or the bazaars.
Unlike our shops, each bazaar displays in a series of booths
one commodity; rugs and carpets have a bazaar given up to
them alone; jewels and ornaments are displayed at another,
and so on. It would seem as if each article was priced accord-
ing to the purse of the customer. It is impossible in oriental
lands to shop expeditiously, as in western countries. The
oriental makes bargains with his customers; he names a price
considerably larger than he expects to receive; the would-be
i84 ths world's progress.
customer names another considerably less than he expects to
pay ; and sometimes for hours the bickering is continued, each
satisfied in the end and probably far better pleased than if the
matter had been speedily adjusted.
Many festivals are observed in Egypt. The year is lunar :
if New Year's Day be ascertained, it is very easy to account
for the months, each being twenty-eight days in length.
Within a period of thirty-three years a complete circuit is
made and another begun. The fact that a given holiday was
celebrated last year in one month proves immediately that this
year it will fall at another time. Mohammedan feasts and
fasts are strictly observed. The month of Ramadan is the
holy month, corresponding in some measure to our Lent.
None of the faithful will allow a morsel of food or a drop of
water to pass their hps during that month from sunrise to
sunset. But the moment the golden orb has fallen below the
horizon the feasting begins, often to last throughout the
night. When this month of daily fasting falls in the hot
summer-time, the mortality is very great, not only because
of immoderate indulgence through the night, but because of
the suffering for lack of water through the day.
The yearly departure of the caravan for Mecca is a
remarkable sight. Every true Mohammedan hopes to some
day make a pilgrimage to Mecca — the sacred city of his
prophet. Each year those who are able set out upon their
journey. A carpet which has been woven for this purpose is
sent to the sacred shrine, to take the place of the one placed
there the previous year. The procession of pilgrims winds
through the streets of Cairo, witnessed by the entire popula-
tion, who throng the streets to catch sight of the carpet and,
if possible, to touch it. Reaching Mecca, the carpet which has
absorbed holiness during the past year is torn up, the pieces
being distributed among the pilgrims, who treasure them as
their dearest possessions.
Upon his return home, each pilgrim is looked upon with
envy and honor by his Mohammedan brethren. He and all
who behold him know that his entrance into Paradise is secure;
henceforward he is distinguished for his piety, and those less
fortunate can but dream of the day when they, too, may be
able to follow his worthy example.
present-day egypt. 185
The Egyptian Museum.
Only in comparatively recent years have antiquities been
adequately prized or cared for. Early in the nineteenth
century Lord Elgin, then on diplomatic service to Turkey,
was so dismayed by the spectacle of Parthenon fragments
lying about unprotected on the Acropolis at Athens, that he
succeeded in obtaining permission from the Sublime Porte to
remove them to England. Subsequently the British Museum
purchased them from him for much less than had been the
expense incurred in removing and exporting them from
Greece. Similarly, valuable recoveries in Egypt were left
for private individuals to take away as they saw fit ; sometimes
they were finally collected by national museums, but quite as
often they became the possessions of the favored few, or in
some cases were even wholly lost.
In 1863 Mariette obtained the exclusive right to excavate
in Egypt. He also awakened the government to the need of
placing all recoveries under its exclusive control. Since the
time of Napoleon scarcely a vessel had left Alexandria without
carrying some priceless treasure to be added to the collections
of the Louvre or the British Museum. In 1878 Mariette
founded the Egyptian Museum at Balak, and for a long time
it was known as the Balak Museum.
Although small and without the slightest protection against
fire, it nevertheless provided a place for antiques; some were
merely stored in sheds, for lack of room, and others remained
unclassified because there was no opportunity to display them.
In 1889 the need for another building was keenly felt. Egypt
could not build at this time, but the Palace of Gizeh was
placed at the disposal of the collection. While somewhat
larger than Balak, it was neither commodious nor safe.
On the first day of April, 1897, the corner stone of a
national museum was laid in Cairo by the Khedive. This
substantial and fireproof building, constructed at a cost of
almost $900,000, was completed November 15, 1902, and is
now the repository of the largest and most valuable collection
of Egyptian antiquities in the world. ^
This museum has been fortunate in its curators — all men
of scholarly attainments and well versed in Egyptian history.
l86 THE WORW)'S PROGRESS.
Marietta was succeeded by M. Maspero, whose voluminous
work upon Egyptian history is well known to many. Later
he resigned this position to resume his literary work in Europe,
only to return by a fortunate circumstance in 1899, in time to
supervise the transfer of the many priceless treasures to their
present abode.
Leaving- the busy streets of Cairo, one turns from Moham-
medan to ancient Egypt. On every hand the past looms up;
pharaohs and ^beings of a period far remote populate this
little world, and so far as life can express itself in material
things, these are available for examination and study. The
plan followed in the arrangement is the chronological one
used also in the earlier buildings. The heavier objects have
been given place on the ground floor; the lighter and smaller
articles on the floor above. The first six rooms on the ground
floor are devoted to the remains of the Old Empire — particu-
larly of the fourth, fifth and sixth dynasties. The diorite
statue of Khafra, so often shown in prints, is here; also the
squatting statue of a scribe, second only in beauty to the one
in the Louvre. The next series of rooms are given over to the
remains of the Middle Empire. The statue of Amenemhet III,
of the twelfth dynasty, is worthy of special mention. More-
over, statues and sphinxes of the Hyksos period are also
found here.
The New Empire left evidences of regal splendor, eclipsing
all earlier periods; gilded chairs, chariots, dishes of gold and
silver, as well as statues of the kings themselves attract
attention. Other rooms record Egypt's decay — when Ethio-
pians ruled the land; the period of Egyptian Renaissance,
productive of wonderful sculpture; the coming of Alexander
and Greek supremacy; the period of Roman rule; and finally
Byzantine Egypt.
The second floor is the treasure house for the more varied
remains. One may see the mummies of the priests of Ammon,
funerary furniture, dolls and other toys, alabaster vases,
domestic furniture, funerary barks, terra-cottas of the Grseco-
Roman period, statues of the gods, amulets and "answerers"
and, most imposing of all perhaps, the royal mummies.
In one of the rooms is an example of the finest surviving
Egyptian painting: a picture of geese feeding. This, like
PRESENT-DAY EGYPT. ^87
Other paintings of ancient Eg}'pt, was found in an old tomb.
The Galerie dcs Bijoux is also on this upper floor. Some
of its wonderful treasures rival the workmanship of Tiffany;
others are even more perfect. The stones most frequently
used were lapis lazuli, carnelian, jasper and garnets. The
favorite ornaments were rings, collars, chains, amulets and
bracelets.
One might spend months in this museum and fail to
exhaust its marvels. Few can do this, and for those whose
visit to Cairo must be brief, it is better to see only a little
and see it well than to attempt to hurriedly pass through all
the rooms. The British Museum, the Louvre and the Metro-
politan Museum in New York all have departments of
Egy^ptian antiquities.
Since the work of excavation and discovery still goes on,
it may reasonably be expected that further light will be thrown
upon the past by the labor of the next few years. For this
reason only recent publications regarding the Nile dwellers
have any great value.
The Suez Canal.
The Suez Canal has been the cause of Egypt's late inter-
national importance. It exemplifies several striking paradoxes.
Opposed bitterly by England at first, it is now largely under
her control ; made possible by the heavy investments of the
viceroy of Egypt, this country has no shipping today to profit
Tjy the canal nor does it receive any benefit whatever because
of it. On the contrary, it has been the real cause of Egypt's
loss of independence. Before the building of the canal began
Egypt had no debt; while the viceroy acknowledged the
suzerainty of the Sultan of Turkey, in a large measure he
was free to conduct all internal affairs, and hoped in time to
gain full sovereignty. The enormous amounts supplied by
Viceroy Said for the canal with the idle hope of dazzling the
eyes of Europe were the first of a long series of extravagances
which so burdened his country with debt that progress finally
ceased and activities became paralyzed. To protect their sub-
jects, who had loaned money at a rate of interest prohibited
in their own lands, European countries stepped in and assumed
1 88 THS WORI^D'S progress.
control of Egyptian finances. Today it is impossible to foresee
how Egypt can regain the independence she has lost.
In ancient times canals provided Egyptians access to the
Red Sea. When the expedition was made to Punt during- the
early years of the New Empire, it is probable that ships built
at Thebes were dispatched directly to the sea by means of some
constructed water way. Again, we know that a canal was
built two or three hundred years before the Christian Era
and that Cleopatra tried to save the remnant of her fleet after
the battle of Actium by means of it; but owing to its impaired
condition and the low water at that season, her attempt failed.
When Egypt became a Roman province a water way con-
necting the Red and Mediterranean seas was projected but
not constructed. Napoleon was quick to see its opportunities
during his Egyptian campaign and set his engineers to work
upon the plan, which was abandoned upon his withdrawal
from Africa. The idea prevailed that the two seas were of
dififerent levels. In 1847 England, France and Austria sent
out a commission to ascertain the facts, and their surveys
proved that the levels were the same. However, nothing was
done and the matter was forgotten save by a French engineer
by the name of De Lesseps, who continued to brood over the
undertaking. In 1856, having unusual opportunities to culti-
vate the acquaintance of Viceroy Said, De Lesseps obtained
from him a concession for the construction of a canal to join
the Red Sea and the Mediterranean, it being distinctly stated
that this should cost Egypt nothing, that fifteen per cent of
the profits should fall to her share, and that in ninety-nine
years, upon payment of the actual improvements made by the
canal company along the banks, the canal should revert to
Egypt. To prevent the importation of vast hordes of laborers,
Said agreed to supply peasant labor at a nominal price,
De Lesseps and his associates to provide them with adequate
food and care; likewise to bring fresh water to the scene of
action for their use. The concession was made conditional
to the approval of the Sultan of Turkey, suzerain of Egypt,
whose consent was to be obtained by De Lesseps without
mediation of the viceroy.
When it came to procuring capital sufficient to promote
the enterprise, De Lesseps found it far more difficult than he
PRESENT-DAY EGYPT. 1 89
had imagined. England had completed a railroad from Alex-
andria to Suez in 1858 and vigorously opposed the canal
project; private funds might have been forthcoming from
Englishmen but for the fact that the government disapproved
so heartily; French capital was needed largely at home. The
canal company issued 400,000 shares, which for some tin^
went begging. De Lesseps finally persuaded Said to take
177,662 shares, which marked the beginning of Egypt's
enslavement and at the same time the beginning of De Lesseps'
success. Stock was readily sold now, and in 1859 the digging
began.
In 1863 Said died and Ismail became viceroy of Egypt.
He fell into the mistake of his predecessor and became a will-
ing victim for the canal company. The work upon the canal
was but one-fourth completed; twenty-five thousand peasants
had been impressed every three months, but their insufficient
food and cruel treatment had resulted in the death of thou-
sands. Protests were made by civilized countries everywhere —
particularly did the English government take a stand for
humane conditions, "her philanthropy and political interests
being roused to simultaneous action."
It is amusing to review articles written during the years
when the canal was first discussed as a possibility, then as an
actual undertaking. The following lines have been taken
from a magazine published in i860:
"We have once more to advert to the monster folly of the
nineteenth century. It is now understood that our government
perceives the wisdom of leaving a project so insane to the
fate and ridicule which inevitably await it. It was their
opposition alone that gave it any importance, and by exciting
the national prejudices of France, enabled the projectors to
raise funds which they never could have got without it. . . .
"The project is to cut a ship canal three hundred feet wide
and thirty feet deep over ninety miles of flat sand. As the
level of the Mediterranean and the Red Sea are the same, the
canal will be near thirty feet below the level of both, and
hence it will be a stagnant and in all likelihood a pestilential
ditch. ...
"The Suez Canal will be begun but never completed nor
half completed. Its wreck, as useless as the Pyramids, but
•1—14
igO THS WORI^d'S progress.
far less interesting, will like to be exhibited to posterity
probably under the name of the 'French Folly.' "♦
England's appeal to the Sublime Porte to have the work
upon the canal stopped brought to light the fact that the
Sultan's sanction to the undertaking had never been procured.
The work done so far had followed very primitive methods,
peasants digging the sand up by handsful, putting it in palm-
leaf baskets and carrying these up the steep bank to empty,
France made great effort to obtain the Sultan's approval, for
the situation was critical. His reply was that he confirmed
the concession granted by Viceroy Said, but that the work
henceforth should not be done by impressed peasants. The
company's treasury was again empty; it chose to hold the
viceroy responsible for the predicament caused by the with-
drawal of the peasants and brought him a bill for damages.
The claims made could not have been substantiated in any
court, for there was no contract, and the concession distinctly
stated that the canal was to cost Egypt nothing. However,
the viceroy was peculiarly situated ; he was dreaming of a day
when he might shake off the suzerainty of Turkey and be
recognized by the powers as a monarch of independent might.
Moreover, he valued the friendship of France — ^which was
to cost him dear. He had been educated in Paris and hoped
to make Cairo the Paris of Egypt. Refusing to pay the
damages asked, De Lesseps prevailed upon him to submit the
matter for arbitration and — strange as it may seem — the
emperor of France was agreed upon, his judgment to be final.
Napoleon HI ruled that the clause wherein the viceroy had
agreed to provide peasant labor amounted to a contract ; that
by the decree of the Sultan this labor was now unavailable;
hence the company had suffered severe loss. The fact that
the water was already filtering in from the sea, necessitating
the use of dredges, was not brought to light. Not only
sustaining the company's claim, he added other injuries which
they had overlooked. The result was that the viceroy paid a
large amount, which added to Egypt's rapidly increasing debt,
and at the same time enabled the canal company to continue
operations.
* Living Age, December, 1860.
PRESENT-DAY EGYPT. I9I
In 1869 the canal was finished, and its completion was
celebrated by sumptuous festivities. The Empress of France,
Emperor of Austria, Crown Prince of Prussia, Prince of
Wales, and many other important members of royalty were
present. Forty-eight ships were required to convey the guests
thither; the celebration lasted one month — the entire cost
defrayed by the viceroy, or the Egyptian government. It
amounted to about $21,000,000. It was for this occasion that
Verdi wrote his opera Aida, the great Egyptologist Mariette
Bey studying ancient costumes and settings to give added
interest and reality, while the Egyptian Museum supplied
jewels for the gifted musicians brought from various parts
of Europe to present the opera.
A few years later it was found that the debt of Egypt
amounted to over $450,000,000. Securities for this vast
amount were held by English, French and German subjects.
Even the stipulated fifteen per cent of the canal profits had
been used as security ; the Nile valley suffered from insufficient
water supply, and the inflated price of cotton, obtaining during
the Civil War in the United States, fell. In the face of
impending ruin, something had to be done. At the clamorous
demands of Europe, the Sultan deposed Ismail, whose reckless
policy, together with that of Said, had brought this over-
whelming trouble upon his country. The British government
bought the stock held by the viceroy — 177,662 shares — for
$20,000,000, thus obtaining a controlling voice in the company.
France and England established what was known as the "dual
control" in Egypt, which continued until the revolt of 1882,
at which time France refused to go to the extreme of bom-
barding Alexandria and withdrew — thus ending her control
in Egyptian affairs. Since 1882 English "occupation" has
continued and bids fair to continue for an indefinite time.
It is even now evident that if the canal reverts to the Egyptian
government upon the expiration of ninety-nine years, this
may be a very different government from that which gave the
original concession.
From the standpoint of commercial history, few events
have been more signal than the completion of the Suez Canal.
Heretofore vessels have saved little except time by making
use of it, for the tolls exacted have been equal to the expense
19* THE world's progress.
of about three thousand miles ocean travel. One dollar and
ninety cents per vessel tonnage and two dollars per passenger,
crews excepted, have been required, thus making the cost of
large vessels passing through amount sometimes to $id,ooo;
$400 has been charged for a small yacht. However, it is now
contemplated to make the tolls for both Panama and Suez
canals uniformi — one dollar and twenty cents per vessel ton-
nage and no charge for passengers being the proposed change.
The distance has been greatly reduced by means of the canal ;
from England to Bombay lessened from 10,860 to 4,620 miles;
from New York to Bombay from 11,520 to 7,920 miles.
The Suez Canal is one hundred miles in length, four
hundred twenty feet wide surface measure, and one hundred
eight feet on the bottom; it was originally twenty-seven feet
nine inches deep but has been since dredged to a depth of
thirty-one feet, lakes making it deeper in some places. It
takes about fifteen hours and forty minutes to pass through,
electricity making night passage possible.
The majority of ships passing through fly under the
English flag; next in number are those sailing under the
French flag; fewer still belonging to Germany. Except for
passenger vessels and men of war, few United States crafts
have been seen in these waters. However, in view of the
opening of Panama, the shipping of this country may be
expected to rapidly increase.
,3 iffi'Y':
wm^m
\T5\R'^ :'
to ano aonia .Ji IIbo ^3^1 as ".lifi aril anil
}/5rii abubnoD oj aiBg at Ji .liay larf bg-j
vllBuau 91B aabiia .essb laqqu .95
ariibbaw ibrfj noqn glrij 8£ sDnirtsv
bmsa ariJ io agniqqfiij nRt^f\>i\[^
t>r{r <w b!.j
of ah^ ♦'" - • --an travel. One dollar and
niner; ' fwo dollars per passenger,
crew* ts. '?nis making the cost of
l;i'"> sometimes to $10,000;
$ , 'ir. However, it is now
contt Panama and Suez
caiul- ..• .• ^ents per vessel ton-
nwt-T o»wi i!g the proposed change.
The- Acd by means of the canal;
fron< .,:,r. -...<. . ........ .>. .va>. J from 10,860 to 4,620 miles ;
fr-nr r-Jcv/ York to Bomhay from 11,520 to 7,920 miles.
■^ot? Canal is one hundred miles in length, four
fr. .. .vu iwcnn fret wide surface measure, and one hundred
elgln Uei on Ote i)ott.>jit ; it was originally twenty-seven feet
n-r.c ?n-he& ''?f?p hm ha*^ '>t<'«vj«/9fe (5i/5ec^g3^t0j5iS'^?|'ll?'of
thirtv<-*ie f«?<, lak«s makujg- it deeper in some places. It
takts atrout nttcftJ hours and forty mmutes to pass through,
eleclit'-Itv' tnp.i irmttKE: -one-'' ^'^spftfifd^ebf modern Cairo out taking t
'1'Ik. . • ■ lllll aixW'srijelfeifjghetlw&'iigtfe t^ qsHd^r ^^^ o"^
K':rr»-h (i«£-- if*v^-^^'^y'^9 ' ' ' ^^ to tb€ uoper clS^si.^ Bnaes^are usua
, transporte t a conveyance as uiis upcm ineir weddi
p.iSvnjTft ^■'^'''•'^-i*' dkyV and the tinklittg feW J&Mr^tPngf^*%he can
have ^H«::^ seen JJ^dd teethe -jafeaSore oifituy^wei^iom view of the
'^'peauijt'f of P<n{»ma. the shipping of this country may be
oxTject' i- ■ ' rnpitily incrtasc.
BABYLONIA AND HER NEIGHBORS
PREFATORY CHAPTER
3[Tl HE interpretation of the present is to be sought
y "% i in the light of the past. Ex oriente lux (light
|Jy.\| out of the east) is an old and familiar saying.
i^j^ In the last century there flashed from this
quarter a light that astonished the world, and
like the wise men of old, it came from the valley of the
Tigris and Euphrates. The consequent increase in our knowl-
edge has revolutionized much of the thought of the past, and
so quietly has this been done that none but those who have
been more particularly interested in the new discoveries are
aware of the importance and extent of the changes made.
Our views of ancient history, literature, life, religion have
been greatly altered and enlarged.
Europe and America have been for almost two millennia
under the potent spell and inspiration of a little people who
lived at the eastern end of the Mediterranean. Prophets and
teachers arose among them who lifted the world ofif its hinges,
set Greece, the home of intellect, to thinking anew, and uttered
their messages through the successors of the Caesars. A
wonderful people, indeed ! How are they to be explained? Most
certainly we must seek for their explanation in the light of
their antecedents and racial affinities. It was, and is, no more
possible to understand them and correctly interpret their literary
remains, the Bible, apart from a knowledge of the great
family of which they formed numerically only an insignificant
part than it would be to understand the spirit and thought of
the people of the United States if the early relations to Great
Britain were unknown or ignored. The Old Testament, in
the book of Genesis, records that the ancestors of the Hebrews
emigrated from Ur of the Chaldees, an ancient city, even in the
days of Abraham, of southern Babylonia and a principal seat
193
^94 THE world's progress.
of the worship of the moon-god, Sin. But of the great family
of the Semites — the Arabians, Babylonians, Assyrians, Canaan-
ites, Aramaeans, Syrians, etc., little was known a century ago.
Practically all scholarly interest in this group until the middle
of the nineteenth century was confined to the literature and
civilization of the Arabs since the Mohammedan era.
No better evidence of the universal ignorance of this past,
extending down to modern times, can be found than in Sir
Isaac Newton's "Chronology of Ancient Kingdoms Amended,"
published in 1728. This foremost scholar of his day writes,
page 268: "However we must allow that Nimrod founded a
kingdom at Babylon, and perhaps extended it into Assyria;
but this kingdom was but of small extent, if compared with
the empires that rose up afterwards; being only within the
fertile plains of Chaldea, Chalonitis, and Assyria, watered by
the Tigris and Euphrates ; and if it had been greater, yet it was
but of short continuance, it being the custom in those early ages
for every father to divide his territories amongst his sons. So
Noah was king of all the world, and Cham was king of all
Afric, and Japhet of all Europe and Asia Minor." Nimrod,
Noah, Ham and Japhet were all as truly historical persons to
the great scientist Newton and his age as were David, Isaiah
and the apostle Paul.
More than a century and a half have passed since this
famous son of a Lincolnshire farmer wrote his Chronology,
but the limitations under which he wrote were destined to
remain for succeeding historians until quite recently. Even
trained historians have found it difficult within the last two or
three decades to adjust themselves to the new discoveries. Not
long ago serious writers contended that the world was created
4004 B.C., in six days of twenty-four hours each, and anathemas
were in store for those that questioned it. Writing in 1855,
Professor Lewis in his "Six Days of Creation," declares that
the Biblical story of the Creation was given "by inspiration to
the earliest times, and to the earliest men, and in the earliest
language that was spoken on the globe." — Hebrew ! Less than
twenty-five years ago one of the present writers' colleagues in
a theological seminary, was teaching his students that the use
of the plural name for God in Hebrew, and the thrice repeated
"Holy, holy, holy," furnished collateral evidence in support of
BABYLONIA AND HER NEIGHBORS. 195
the doctrine of The Trinity, He was quite unaware that the
pol>i:heistic Assyrians used the same thrice repeated ashru,
ashru, ashru, in praise of their gods.
This however is only another proof of the common origin
of the Semitic peoples, a reminder of the days when the tribes
were not dispersed, and Abraham had not yet gone forth from
the gates of Ur. Scholars of today have found that the sub-
stance of the first twelve chapters of Genesis is also recorded in
the literature of other Semitic tribes, the Babylonian narrative
being strikingly similar to that of the Hebrews. The other
stories lack the lofty spiritual quality of the Old Testament nar-
rative, as the Hebrew writers were untouched by the polytheism
of their neighbors. The Semitic race has always been preemi-
nently religious, and though the Assyrians and Babylonians failed
to spiritualize their beliefs, as did the Hebrews, their cosmologies
show the traces of their common origin. There we find Adam
and Eve, under the names of Adapaor Eabani and Ukhat, created
out of clay, and other similarities, too numerous to mention
here. The point is that we have in these records valuable material
on the period before the Hebrews were called to be a separate
nation, and we can better estimate their remarkable qualities.
Owing to the political relations into which the people of
Israel and Judah were brought to the empires of the Tigris and
Euphrates valley, the compilers of the historical books of The
O. T., and the prophets have given us incidental, valuable, but
not always unprejudiced notices of their kinsmen to the East.
The n. Book of Kings touches upon some noteworthy events
from the time of Tiglathpileser H. including the fall of Israel
and Judah. Characteristic of these notices is the complete
omission of Sargon's name except in Isaiah 20:1, where until
the discovery of the inscriptions it was thought to be an official
title, although he was the one who completed the conquest of
the northern kingdom, the "House of Omri," as he calls it, and
deported its inhabitants. It is difficult indeed for an Assyriol-
ogist to imagine an Assyrian rabshak speaking to the messengers
of Hezekiah as that officer is reported to have done in II.
Kings 18:25f. : "Am I now come up without the Lord against
this place to destroy it ? The Lord said unto me, Go up against
this land and destroy it." This Yahwe (Lord) Isaiah declares
the Assyrian blasphemed, an act, which, to say the least, was
19^ THE world's progress.
more in accord with his usual temper. Yahwe was no more
in the estimation of Sennacherib than the gods of the petty
principaHties of Hamath and Arpad. The truth seems to be
that the writer in the book of Kings makes the rabshak speak
as he is alleged to have spoken just as the Babylonian priests
declared that Cyrus had been called to the conquest of Babylon
by the Babylonian god Marduk.
The books, especially of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Nahum and
Ezekiel, contain some interesting material upon the cultus of
Babylonia. It is, however, the darker features that the prophets
delight to draw, and the picture they present to us does not
in all points resemble the one we find in the palaces of the kings.
The animus displayed toward the enemy is far removed from
the precept which enjoins that he shall be loved. The four-
teenth chapter of Isaiah is a standing witness to the correctness
of this observation. It is a magnificent paean of prophetic
feeling, but it is necessary to observe that the fate of Nabonidus,
the last king of Babylon, was not so wretched as here described.
When Cyrus conquered the city he made Nabonidus governor.
It may, however, be that this perfervid and vengeful utterance
of irrepressible joy related originally to Sargon II., king of
Assyria, conqueror of Samaria, who, as his successor Sen-
nacherib tells us "was not buried in his house," and that after
the fall of Babylon the latter name was interpolated. At all
events this king, unlike "the kings of the nations," did not "sleep
in his own house" (vss. 18-19), and the introductory verses are
obviously late. Optimistic and pessimistic patriots who writhed
under the domination of a foreign power, religious zealots
conscious of their possession of a purer and practically re-
ligious faith, it is little wonder they portrayed only the harsher
features of their spoilers and conquerors.
The apocalyptic book of Daniel, so long interpreted as a
sober recital of historic events, is distinctly and admittedly at
variance on some points with the monumental records of Neb-
uchadnezzar, Nabonidus, and Cyrus. It would, however, be an
unjustifiable inference were any one to conclude from the fore-
going that the records of the Old Testament had all, or in great
measure, been relegated to the hazy region of myth and fiction
by the revelations of the contemporary records of the monu-
ments. The historical presentation of events from the age of
BABYI^ONIA AND HER NEIGHBORS. 197
Saul onwards has on the whole received welcome corrobora-
tion. The inscriptions on stone and clay have confirmed the
story of the parchment rolls, completing, amending, elucidating
it and always enabling us to interpret it more accurately.
Sufficient has been said in the foregoing to suggest the far-
reaching importance of Babylonian and Assyrian archaeology
and literature for the understanding of the Old Testament. We
are able now not only to bring new material in contemporary
documents to aid us in its study, we are able also to interpret
the life and thought of its people in the light of the larger
history, political, institutional, social, moral, legal and religious,
of the great family to which Israel belonged. The life of the
various members of the ancient Semitic stock has been illum-
inated by the discoveries which began with Botta and Layard.
The conditions existing in Canaan prior to the conquest, for
example, became clear only with the discovery of the Tell-
Amarna tablets in 1887. They were found in the palace of
Amenophis on the bank of the Nile about 180 miles south of
Cairo and they cast an unexpected light upon the period of the
Exodus. Israel, her history, her conquests, her captivities and
her religion no longer stand as things apart in which the super-
natural has been imminent and active in a manner nowhere
else discoverable in the history of the race. A "Thus saith
Jehovah " differs from a similar utterance from the gods of
Israel's neighbors, but it is rather in the character of the
prophet than in the understanding of the people.
While the Old Testament gave us some information about
Babylonia and Assyria prior to the discoveries of their own
monuments, a brief account of which is given in the follovv^ing
pages, it must be admitted that it has gained by these dis-
coveries incomparably more than it gave. But we have learned
not only about Israel and the Bible, we have learned also much
about the earlier Amoritic inhabitants of Palestine who had
entered there and spread into Egypt and Babylonia as early as
the second half of the third millennium B.C. Much has been
won from these records about Egypt and Ethiopia, about the
peoples of Arabia, the Hittites, the Aramaeans, Armenians,
Elamites, Medes and Persians as well as the early inhabitants
of Babylonia, the Sumerians, the original inventors of the
cuneiform writing, which was a later development of pict-
198 THE WORU>'S PROGRESS.
©graphic symbols. We have learned with astonishment of the
advances made in Babylonia in early times in the arts and archi-
tecture. Deprived by the nature of his country, in which
wood and stone were not to be found, we read of Gudea (Circa
3000 B.C.) bringing diorite from Magan, West Arabia, for his
sculptures, some of which are now to be seen in the Louvre
collection. The skill of the lapidarist in connection with the
cunningly engraved cylinder seals is today the admiration of
the best workers in the art of engraving, and the wounded lioness
from the palace of Ashurbanipal in the seventh century B.C.
is the best portrayal of animal life that has come to us from
ancient times. As Professor Sayce has recently shown, the lamp
in use in Greece in the historical age, and not before, and later
borrowed by the Romans, and after the Greek conquest, by the
Egyptians, was Babylonian in origin and a common utensil in
Mesopotamia prior to the fourteenth century B.C. The com-
posite symbols of Babylonia were adopted by the people of
Western Asia. The eagle of the southern city-kingdom of
Lagash (Telloh) was transported to the Hittites. The eagle
symbol, wherever found, double-headed or single, is a bird from
the land of Paradise. The winged horse is found upon Hittite
seals, and from Asia passed over the Hellespont and became the
Greek Pegasos. The native fetish deities of Asia Minor were
replaced by gods in human form, and the idea of a trinity, or
triad of deities, followed in the wake of Babylonian culture.
In architecture the Babylonians invented the arch. This
achievement had always been attributed to the Etruscans on the
basis of the statements of the classical writers. But it was
used by the Babylonians, as we now know, three thousand years
before there is any evidence of its use on classical soil. Col-
umnar construction dates back to the same period. Both the
arch and the column were found in the buildings unearthed a
few years ago at Nippur by the expeditions from the University
of Pennsylvania. Owing to the dearth of wood and stone
these pioneers in the arts of civilization were forced to have
recourse to clay, the only material available. They therefore
invented the pillar made of brick. Babylonia was the land par
excellence of brick buildings. Their land abounded in asphaltum
and this they used instead of mortar, as the Hebrew writer
tells us they did when they built the tower of Babel, "the temple
BABYLONIA AND HER NEIGHBORS. 199
with the lofty tower," in Babylon. "Their technical skill rested
on scientific principles no less unattainable in modern archi-
tecture than the Grecian idea of beauty in the plastic art. The
buildings which they constructed with brick must have been
built according to rules and laws unknown to modern archi-
tecture, which views many of these ancient works with the
same astonishment as is evoked by the pyramids of Egypt."
Babylonia can at least claim to have made early advances in
astronomical observations. The movements of the heavenly
bodies were carefully watched from the earliest times and
records made of them. Even in the late Roman period the
Chaldeans were still looked upon as the founders of astronomy.
It is true that Egypt had also at a very early age successfully
cultivated this science and had introduced a practical calendar
which began the year on the day when Sirius was first observed
on the eastern horizon at sunrise 4200 years before the Christian
era. Some Egyptologists hold that this calendar was the pre-
cursor of the Julian, which in turn was modified by Pope Greg-
ory in 1582, thus giving us the Gregorian calendar which was
adopted in England by the Calendar Amendment Act of 1751.
But it is more probable that we are indebted to the Babylonians
for our calendrical system, Greece and Rome borrowing from
them. The naming of the days of the week after the sun and
moon gods and the five planets known to them seems beyond
dispute. It was they who divided the circle into 360 degrees
in connection with their sexagesimal system of numerals, the
day into 24 hours, and the hour into 60 minutes. The faces of
our watches bear daily and hourly witness to our obligations to
this old people of the land of Shinar. There are 24 hours in
the day, but our time-pieces divide them into two periods of
12 hours each, just as the Babylonian day was reckoned as 12
double hours. By what routes and means these transfers of
scientific achievements were made from the mother-land of
science to the peoples of Europe we are not yet able to decide.
Further discoveries, however, will doubtless reveal still more
clearly the historic connections of modern culture with the people
of the Tigris and Euphrates valley who themselves speak of
their cities as "ancient" before the deluge.
All of this increase of knowledge hinted at in the preceding
paragraphs, and all too briefly sketched in this work, is the
200 THE WORIvD'S progress.
acquisition of our own times. The Greeks, who in haughty
disdain regarded all others as "barbarians," knew little of this
ancient of days — nothing whatever of the great ruler Sargon I.
or Hammurabi, imperialist and great law-giver fifteen hundred
years before the enactment of the laws of Draco and Solon at
Athens.
Among the Greek writers Herodotus is the only one that can
be considered as a direct source. He may have visited Babylon
about the middle of the fifth century B.C. Much of what he has
written, however, is clearly a matter of hearsay or romancing.
The judgment passed on him by his contemporaries and suc-
cessors was certainly not without foundation. His critics ac-
cused him, as the Arabian historians did Ibn Ishaq, the biog-
rapher of Mohammed, of direct falsification, and even a super-
ficial study of his writings is sufficient to prove that the accusa-
tion was not without apparent warrant. One seeks in vain, for
example, in the Babylonian literature for evidence of the cus-
tom, which he describes as one of the most beautiful and wisest
of the Babylonians, of putting the marriageable girls once a
year upon the market to be sold to the highest bidders ! Naively
he adds that this was ^n earlier custom that was no longer
practised in his time. Of the history of Babylon he knew little —
of its latest rulers and even of the great Nebuchadnezzar he had
not an inkling as Tiele, the Dutch historian, has said. Ctesias,
the Carian physician who lived for seventeen years at the Persian
court of Artaxerxes Mnemon in the fourth century, did not
know that Babylon had an independent existence. Those who
followed were for the most part merely excerptors from those
who preceded them. In view of the paucity and unreliability of
the sources an impenetrable veil was drawn between us and the
ancient orient. At last it has been lifted, and in the language of
the old poets of Babylon, "brother again sees brother."
CLAY JARS OF CHALDEA.
BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA
CHAPTER I.
Early Civilization of Asia.
N STUDYING the history of Babylonia and As-
syria, our attention is drawn to one of the earhest
inhabited portions of the globe — so far as is now
known: to the valley of the Euphrates. Biblical
tradition favored the view that this was the Cradle
)f the Human Race. Here the Yahvistic writer placed
the fabled Garden of Eden, the best explanation he could
devise for the origin of mankind. The valley was a regular
thoroughfare for early tribes journeying to and from Arabia,
and reaching out to the east, west, or north for new homes,
often remaining for long succeeding generations in the fertile
region itself. It was a land where men of various tongues and
dialects met, only to again diverge. The effort of the Hebrew
to explain how so many languages had come into being resulted
in the story of the Tower of Babel. Before the beginnings of
the Hebrew race as distinct from the general Semitic family,
an old civilization had developed here in Chaldea. In con-
nection with his worship, the Chaldean built high ziqqurats —
temple-towers of from three to seven platforms, rising one
above the other, each platform smaller than the one below.
The story handed down from one generation of the Hebrews
to another was that the Chaldeans had once tried to build a
tower to Teach the very heavens. Alarmed at their presumo-
tion, God confounded their speech so they could no I'oogv*
201
202 THE WORIvD'S PROGRESS.
understand one another. Thus was man punished and thus
the various speeches originated.
In following the history of the mixed race known as the
Babylonians, and of those who pressed north of the home-
country to found the state of Assyria, we shall become ac-
quainted with the only great nation of antiquity whose civil-
ization may have been older than that of the Egyptians. We
have no reliable record of the Chinese until late in the third
millennium, and their civilization, if more ancient still, was
isolated at least, and affected no other people. When
Thutmose I. penetrated to the valley of the Euphrates, some
years after the expulsion of the Hyksos, he came upon a nation,
of whose culture, script, and language, as the recently discovered
Tell-el-Amarna tablets indicate, were already familiar to his
own people.
The recorded life of Egypt reaches back more than 6,000
years ; civilization in Mesopotamia may have been more ancient.
Many monuments have been unearthed in the sites of ancient
cities which throw light upon great antiquity. In Egypt visible
monuments have borne witness through long succeeding cen-
turies of early strength ; in Babylonia and Assyria the very site
of cities was forgotten, and men no longer remembered where
these two influential powers of antiquity had developed.
Though in the last century only anything like a complete history
of Egypt has been possible, yet evidences of a nation long since
extinct, were preserved in temples and tombs, and hieroglyphics
covering walls and columns indicated that whoever should dis-
cover their meaning would learn of their mighty builders. Far
different was the case of Babylonia and Assyria. They too
had once been proud and wealthy nations, taking foremost
rank ; their cities filled the valleys of the Euphrates and Tigris,
and their fertile fields yielded even more abundantly than the
rich Nile valley. Their palaces rose to the glory of their kings,
and their commerce penetrated to every corner of the ancient
world. Then changes came upon the life of antiquity. New
peoples pushed to the front; the tide of commerce shifted into
other channels. These nations were conquered by their yet
stronger neighbors, and their temples and palaces, built not
of enduring stone but of perishable brick, fell into heaps of
nameless mounds. When the waters of the mighty rivers
were no longer guided through canals to irrigate the land.
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 20$
the soil ceased to be productive. Desert sands spread over the
desolate region and reclaimed wide areas which became the
tenting ground for nomadic tribes. The very words of the
late writer in the Book of Isaiah concerning these nations rang
true through the ages :
"And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees'
excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and
Gomorrah. It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be
dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the
Arabian pitch tent there ; neither shall the shepherds make
their fold there. But wild beasts of the desert shall lie
there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures;
and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there.
And the wild beasts of the islands shall cry in their deso-
late houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces ; and
her time is near to come, and her days shall not be pro-
longed.
"Then shall the Assyrian fall with the sword, not of a mighty
man ; and the sword, not of a mean man, shall devour
him ; but he shall flee from the sword, and his young men
shall be discomfited. And he shall pass over to his strong-
hold for fear, and his princes shall be afraid of the en-
sign."^
Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, disappeared suddenly. In
Alexander's day its site was unknown. Babylon, however, was
not destroyed by Cyrus, but continued its importance until the
rise of its rival Seleucia, and was still inhabited in the Middle
Ages. But the two nations were forgotten in the west for hun-
dreds of years. Then with the dawn of peace and order in
Europe during the later Middle Ages, came the desire to know
about the past. Monks who made pilgrimages to the Holy Land,
during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, sometimes pressed
farther east, and made mention of strange mounds seen in the
valleys of these ancient rivers. Travelers told of curious in-
scriptions found among the ruins there. In rare cases, they
even went to the length of copying one or two, with greater
1 Isaiah 13, 19-22; 31, 8-9. Note.— This is the A. V. version. It
should read: The Assyrian shall fall by a sword, not a man's,
And a sword, not a human one, shall devour him.
[And he shall flee from the face of the sword.
And his brave ones shall become tributary.
And his rock be will run by in terror.
And his princes in fright shall abandon their flaff.]
The destruction is to be supernatural, according to Isaiah. The
liaes in brackets are probably a later addition. — (Craig.)
204 THE WORU)'S PROGRESS.
or less accuracy. It was left finally for the eighteenth century
to locate the old sites of Babylonian cities, and for the nine-
teenth century to discover the hidden meaning of the wedge-
shaped letters inscribed upon their ruins.
To the patient efforts of the men who persisted in their
difficult and often disheartening task of unearthing ruins, and
to the scholars who toiled year after year to read the for-
gotten language these ruins brought to light, we owe most
that is now known regarding the early inhabitants of the
Euphrates valley. These nations, so long destroyed, their
cities, so long abandoned, we shall try to bring before us as
they have been reconstructed by historians in more preten-
tious volumes. Naturally, any account of the Babylonians and
Assyrians will involve some consideration of their neighbors,
whose civilizations developed by their side, and whose fortunes
frequently mingled with theirs.
The Recovery of Forgotten Cities.
Were we to proceed at once to the development of the
Babylonian and Assyrian states without first pausing to note
what far-reaching efforts have been made to read their early
civilization from their remains, entombed within the earth, we
would deprive ourselves of one of the most interesting pages in
modem historical research.
Since the middle of the twelfth century we find references
made to the ruins of Babylon and Nineveh, by monks and
travellers who greatly confused the ancient cities, repeatedly
mistaking Baghdad for Babylon. In 1613 there was published
by an English nobleman an account of his distant travels. "Sir
Anthony Sherley; His Relation of His Travels into Persia."
This is what he wrote of these ancient capitals: "I will
speak ... of Babylon; not to the intent to tell stories,
either of the huge ruins of the first Towne or the splendour of
the second, but because nothing doth impose anything in man's
nature more than example — ^to shew the truth of God's word,
whose vengeances, threatened by His Prophets, are truely suc-
ceeded in all those parts. . . .
"All the ground on which Babylon was spred is left now
desolate; nothing standing in that Peninsula between the
Euphrates and the Tigris, but only part, and that a small part
STORY OP BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 20$
of the greate Tower, which God hath sufifered to stand (if man
may speake so confidently of His greate impenetrable counsels)
for an eternal testimony of His work in the confusion of Man's
pride, and that Arke of Nebuchadnezzar for as perpetual a
memory of his greate idolatry and condigne punishment. . . .
"Nineve, that which God himself called That greate Citie,
hath not one stone standing which may give memory of the
being of a towne. One English mile from it is a place called
Mosul, a small thing, rather to be a witness of the other's
mightinesse and God's judgment than of any fashion of mag-
nificence in it selfe." ^
These words struck the note which was to lead to exten-
sive labors for discovery. Europe was at the time passing
through a period of deep religious fervor, which was felt in
many classes of society and walks of life, and people who cared
not at all for the history of ancient nations were roused by the
possibility offered to verify statements found in the Old Testa-
ment and prove its inspiration by showing the fulfillment of its
prophecies. Although nothing of importance was accomplished
at this time, the religious motive survived.
The first systematic investigation was made by Claudius
James Rich, appointed in 1811 as resident of the East India
Company at Baghdad. He made a thorough examination
of all the large mounds in that particular locality and pre-
pared a survey of the most important ones. This proved very
useful to those who came later to the field. He had besides
made a small collection of finds at Hillah and Mosul — a box
only three feet square — which were sent with his charts to the
British Museum. These later furnished the inspiration to
further exploration.
In 1842 the French government sent Paul Emil Botta
to Mosul as consular agent, and his name was destined to be
connected with all discoveries made in Assyria during the early
part of the nineteenth century. Stimulated by Julius Mohl,
who had examined Rich's meagre but suggestive finds, he was
the first to actually dig into the mounds of ruins. After com-
ing upon nothing noteworthy during three months' excavation
in Kujundjik, a peasant told him that strange objects had been
"Sherley : His Relation of His Travels Into Persia.
1—15
206 THE WORUJ'S PROGRESS.
found at Khorsabad, about four hours to the northeast, and
thither Botta sent his workmen.
The poor Arabian laborers of this region are ignorant
Mohammedans, and they suspected that Botta was digging
for gold, while they conceived the unique idea that the frag-
ments bearing inscriptions, now and then brought to light,
were charms which in some way guided him on to hidden
treasure. The Turkish Pasha put all possible obstacles in his
way, but the very first shaft Botta sank came upon the walls
of an old palace — a find especially valuable at a time when only
the most enthusiastic scholars had faith in the undertaking,
and people generally regarded the project as misguided. No
less than 209 rooms were laid bare by Botta and his successor,
Victor Place.
Austen Henry Layard, an English boy of Huguenot
descent, had devoured all available books of travel and adven-
ture. He came to the work of Assyrian exploration as an
enthusiastic young man about the time of Botta's widely noised
discovery. On November 9, 1845, Mr. Layard began to
excavate at Nimrud, some distance south of Nineveh, and
before the first day's work was done he had the promise, and,
in part, the satisfaction of realizing his "visions of palaces under
ground." He had discovered the North- West palace of Nimrud,
built by Ashurnatsirpal, 884-861 B.C., upon the foundations of
one laid by Shalmeneser, 1300 B.C. After a little more than a
year and a half he returned to England having discovered no
less than three palaces. The funds necessary for his work were
obtained from Sir Stratford Canning, the English ambassador
at Constantinople.
In 1849 excavations were begun again with the assistance
of Hormuzd Rassam at the expense of the British Museum.
"The excavations carried on under these auspices, and with the
powers Layard then possessed, were successful beyond his
wildest dream. As the trenches followed round the walls of
room after room they uncovered great slabs of alabaster, with
which the chamber walls were wainscoted, and these were found
to be richly carved in relief with scenes of hunting, of war,
^ind of solemn ceremony. The very life of palace, camp and
fteld in Assyrian days came back again before the astonished
tyes of the explorer, while these received an addition to their
STORY O^ BABYU)NIA AND ASSYRIA. 20/
verisimilitude by the discovery in some of the ruins of pieces
of iron which had once formed parts of the same kind of armor
as that portrayed on the reHefs, together with iron and bronze
helmets, while in others were found vases and ornamentally
carv^ed pieces of ivory. Here were the pictures and there were
the objects which they represented. As the trenches were dug
deeper or longer, monuments carved or inscribed were found
daily."^
Whatever objects could be transported were sent to the
British Museum in London, and went far to arouse interest
and thus secure funds to enable Layard to continue his opera-
tions. During this expedition the palace of Sennacherib, the
walls of which had been partly laid bare during the first period,
was still further explored, and in addition to the valuable bas-
reliefs an ancient library, consisting of thousands of clay tablets,
was found in two of the rooms, and this was greatly increased
by Rassam's discovery of the North-West palace in 1854.
In 1850 William K. Loftus began his labors in this field,
but none of his discoveries proved so valuable as his descrij>-
tions of various mounds, used as guides to this day. Con-
cerning the appearance of the mounds he wrote: "I know
of nothing more exciting or impressive than the first sight
of one of these great Chaldean piles looming in solitary
grandeur from the surrounding plains and marshes. A thou-
sand thoughts and surmises concerning its past eventful history
and origin — its gradual rise and rapid fall — naturally present
themselves to the mind of the spectator. The hazy atmosphere
of early morning is peculiarly favorable to considerations and
impressions of this character, and the gray mist intervening
between the gazer and the object of his reflections imparts to it a
dreamy existence. This fairylike effect is heightened by mirage,
which strangely and fantastically magnifies its form, elevating
it from the ground, and causing it to dance and quiver in the
rarefied air. No wonder, therefore, that the beholder is lost in
pleasing doubt as to the actual reality of the apparition before
him."*
Of all the Assyrian discoveries which were crowded into
the last century, unquestionably the most important was made
^Rogers: Hist, of Babylonia and Assyria, 154.
*Lof tus : Travels and Researches in Chaldea and Susiana.
208 THE world's progress.
by Rassam in 1852 and 1853 when he laid bare the mag^nificent
palace of Assurbanipal, in which was found the royal library.
Here the king had caused to be collected tablets embodying the
literature of both Babylonia and Assyria, and numberless royal
inscriptions of both states, from the earliest time. Owing to
the circumstance of their having been inscribed upon tablets of
clay, many had been destroyed as the building in which they
were kept fell in ruins. Many were found in an almost perfect
state of preservation and thousands of others have since been
joined by the patient labors of scholars. At this point Assyrian
excavations largely ceased, for it was felt that unless some
understanding of these tablets could be gained, it was scarcely
worth while to amass more of them at such great outlays.
Archaeologists realized that the inscriptions must be deciphered
before funds would be forthcoming for fresh undertakings.
We have seen how difficult a task Egyptologists had in
discovering the meaning of the hieroglyphics, and how the
Rosetta stone, giving one decree in three different languages,
at last led to an understanding of the whole. The Babylonians
and Assyrians used a series of wedge-shaped letters or symbols,
which has given the name cuneiform to their written language.
These wedge-shaped signs were impressed on the clay by a
stylus, and several of them are united to form a syllabic char-
acter. There are about 400 of these complex syllabic signs
in the syllabary, instead of 26 letters as in English. Where
the writing on the tablets is very close, as it frequently is, it
is often very difficult to read the signs correctly. In the earlier
Babylonian period, moreover, the form differs from that of the
later Babylonian and Assyrian period. To make the reading
still more puzzling they are polyphonic, i. e., have several
syllabic values, and are also used ideagraphically, i. e., may be
used for entire words. If we should read h either b, p, m, d,
etc., and also for break, run, beside with only the context to
guide us we would have a parallel case. There was no Rosetta
stone to help this time, and the tablets long remained sealed
books. We have only to look at a page of the characters to
wonder that their meaning at last dawned upon the tireless
workers.
Prominent among linguists engaged upon Assyrian inscrip-
tions were Sir Henry Rawlinson, Fox Talbot, Jules Oppert,
STORY 05" BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 20g
and a talented Irish scholar by the name of Hincks. At last
translations of certain inscriptions were offered by these men,
but critics looked at the apparently meaningless signs and
questioned the versions rendered. At least, they insisted, there
was no way to prove that a meaning had not been worked into
them, rather than out of them.
Finally it was suggested that a single inscription, hitherto
unread, be sent to the four scholars just mentioned, and that
they be asked to return their renderings sealed, to a committee
appointed to examine them. To the amazement of the world,
the translations made were almost identical, differences occur-
ring in those portions which the translators themselves had
marked as uncertain. This was, indeed, a triumph for students
of the Assyrian language, and compelled a general agreement
that the cuneiform tongue had at last been mastered. Rapid
advances were made after this test, which was made in 1857.
The translation of numerous tablets was at once eagerly begun.
George Smith, a young man engaged to copy inscriptions
required by Rawlinson for some material he was about to
publish, was not content to copy meaningless signs, but set
to work to understand them. So rapidly did he advance in
mastering the language that he became most helpful in classi-
fying the tablets stored in the British Museum. In connection
with his work there one incident deserves notice.
The clay tablets had been removed as carefully as possible
from the ruins of the library at Nineveh, and had been brought
to the London Museum with as little mishap as could be
expected. Some were perfect, some partly missing, some in
fragments. One day George Smith came upon a deluge story
which so strongly resembled the version given in the Old Testa-
ment that he was struck by the similarity. Now recent years
have disclosed that the flood legend has been common among
all Semitic peoples, but the fact was not established in the
middle part of the last century. Finding many portions of
the story lacking. Smith felt that he would like to go in search
of them. The whole affair was widely published, and Edwin
Arnold, then editor of the Daily Telegraph of London, became
interested in it. Through his influence the Telegraph offered
five thousand guineas to pay the expenses of an expedition
to Nineveh, under the direction of George Smith, to recover,
if possible, the missing portions of the story. In 1872, accord-
2IO THE WORIvD'S progress.
ingly, Smith started out upon his search for the "Deluge
Fragments," under contract to telegraph his experiences and
discoveries to the London paper. When he actually came upon
a fragment of the deluge epic, it was regarded in England
as a great and unexpected triumph. Two other fragments
were found, and then the Telegraph, probably thinking it had
been sufficiently advertised, decided that its venture had suc-
ceeded, and Smitn was recaliea. Returning in 1873, he died
in Assyria three years later of a fever contracted in the marshy,
fever-breeding country.
In recent years, excavations have been carried on in the
valley of the Euphrates under auspices of the University of
Pennsylvania. Most of this work has been done at Nippur,
and accounts of the discoveries have been published. An
agreement was made with the Turkish government to the
effect that all remains uncovered be turned over to the Imperial
Museum at Constantinople. So generous did the leaders of
this college band prove in aiding the Turks to classify objects
found, accepting no remuneration for their services, that the
Sultan was pleased to present a large number of them to the
Museum of the University of Pennsylvania, where they are
today exhibited.
TRANSPORT OF TIMBER FOR SARGON S PALACE.
(Tbe God Ea. represcated in the lower left-hand corner as half man, half fiah.
ctcorto the fleet.)
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 211
CHAPTER 11.
Sources of Babylonian and Assyrian History.
In considering the four important sources of Babylonian
and Assyrian history, we may note first, Old Testament writ-
ings.
Unquestionably the Bible has gained more through
Assyrian excavations than it has itself contributed- to the
history of that country. As has been said before, the Old
Testament consists of Hebrew writings which portray various
phases of Hebrew life, and mention is made of other nations
only when the Chosen People by force of circumstances
were thrown in direct contact with them. Since their king-
dom was overcome by Babylonians, we could scarcely expect
Hebrew writers to hold unprejudiced opinions regarding their
own conquerors; nevertheless whatever facts concerning them
crept into their writings have been verified by modern dis-
covery.
Much is often revealed in a few words, as is characteristic
of Biblical expression. For example, see how much is con-
densed in the following sentence : " And the king of Egypt
came not again any more out of his land : for the king of Baby-
lon had taken from the river of Egypt unto the river Euphrates
all that pertained to the king of Egypt."
Not alone have the facts recorded in the Old Testament
proved useful to those engaged in reconstructing the history
of the Tigris-Euphrates nations, but the desire of religious
adherents to confirm the truth and accuracy of ancient Hebrew
writings has served as an incentive both to those who did the
work and to those who by contributions made the task possible.
The writings of the early Greeks concerning Babylonia
and Assyria supply another source. Berosus was a Baby-
lonian priest connected with a temple sacred to Bel. He
lived during the fourth century before Christ, when Baby-
lonia and Assyria had become Greek provinces. For the
Antiochus he wrote a lengthy history of his country, which
would have been of greatest value to us had it been preserved.
212 THE world's PROGRESS.
Unfortunately it was destroyed, and only excerpts, made by
Polyhistor and Apollodoras of the first century B.C., are now
in existence.
Herodotus devoted more than twenty chapters of his first
volume to Babylonia, but owing to certain faults we have
found characteristic of his writings, he has led some scholars
to even declare that he never saw the country at all. While
they cannot be wholly depended upon, his writings have some
value. Other Greek writers have thrown so little light on
Babylonian life that we shall not consider them here at all.
Thirdly, we may mention Egyptian records as a source for
Mesopotamian history. The Egyptian hieroglyphics and the
cuneiform symbols of the Assyrian tongue were translated
about the same time, so that little actual help was gained
through Egyptian sources. Nevertheless, campaigns waged
by Egyptian kings within the very borders of Asiatic countries,
with detailed accounts as set forth upon the walls of Egyptian
temples, cannot fail to aid in the reconstruction of Assyrian
growth and development.
Lastly and most important of all are the monuments and
remains unearthed in Mesopotamia itself. More than one
hundred thousand clay record tablets have been recovered;
temples and palaces have been excavated, and within these
were found alabaster slabs carved with many scenes character-
istic of Assyrian life; armour, utensils and numerous other
articles have each thrown some light upon the ancient civiliza-
tion. The value of this first hand, or original material, is
priceless indeed, since without it no detailed knowledge of these
old kingdoms could ever have been hoped for. Explorations
among the ruins are still carried on, and it is possible that the
present century may add much to what has already been gained
concerning the ancient dwellers in the once fertile valleys of
the Euphrates and Tigris.
PhysicaIv Geography oe Babylonia and Assyria.
If you will look closely at a map of the eastern hemi-
sphere, you will see that a great tract of desert extends across
northern Africa, and reaching beyond the Mediterranean Sea,
the Isthmus of Suez and the Red Sea, traverses the entire
width of Asia to the Pacific Ocean. This desert waste is
STORY OI' BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 213
SO broken by plateaus and mountain ranges that its vast extent
is scarcely realized. Rivers occasionally cross it, producing
fertile valleys which, generally speaking, support the life of
the whole area.
We are now concerned with the location and topography
of the ancient Babylonian and Assyrian kingdoms, and of
those districts lying adjacent. North of the Persian Gulf
some considerable distance, we find the Armenian mountains.
These ranges are loftier than most in Western Asia, piercing
high above the eternal snow-line. During winter their sides
and gorges are massed with snow, which melts rapidly with
the warmth of spring and heat of summer. The drainage
of the mountains has resulted in many streams, which unite
to form the Euplirates on the western slopes, and on the
eastern slopes, form the Tigris. Ages ago these two rivers
emptied into the Persian Gulf at points some distance from
each other. But such heavy deposits of rich mountain loam
have been brought down by the streams, that they have ex-
tended the land far into the gulf, pushing the water back
for some hundred miles. Joining one another in the area
thus formed, the waters of the two streams reach the gulf
today as one mighty river with many mouths. We may
judge how great changes this land-building process has
wrought by the fact that the town of Ur, now nearly two
hundred miles from the gulf, was a sea-port at the time of
which we are now studying. The annual increase of the land is
about 115 feet.
Herodotus' statement that "Egypt is the gift of the Nile,"
might have been made with equal truth of the Euphrates and
Babylonia. Here again an annual overflow refreshes a valley,
while in antiquity a network of canals provided water, fertility,
and humidity for districts sloping off gently on either side.
Today this territory is held by the Turks, and with
their ruinous policy of trying to extract all possible revenue
from their lands while doing nothing to improve them, the
old canals are abandoned, none others take their place, and
the rivers wander today at will, leaving part of the area
parched and unproductive, and converting the rest into fever-
breeding swamps and marshes.
The Euphrates is the longer of the two rivers. Taking
214 THE world's progress.
its rise west of a lofty mountain, it receives several tributaries
near its source, but none join it during the last eight hundred
miles of its course. The snows melt gradually ; in March the
stream begins to overflow its channel; high water mark is
reached by the first of June, and July finds the waters receding.
This river is very winding in its course, at one place being
but one hundred miles from the Mediterranean Sea and near
Babylon running along within twenty-five miles of the Tigris,
only to immediately branch off again to the south. Its entire
length is about eighteen hundred miles, and most of the water
is spent before it reaches the Gulf.
The Tigris is somewhat different from its sister stream.
Its name signifies " the swift," or the " arrowy," and indi-
cates its rapid current, whereas the Euphrates flows more
gently. Not so broad as the Euphrates, the Tigris is much
deeper. On the east of the high mountains wherein this
river has its rise, spring comes quickly ; the water rises rapidly,
and the period of its overflow is short. Beginning to rise in
March, the first of May sees the high water mark, and by
the last of June the stream is fast finding its usual volume.
The territory between the Tigris and Euphrates the
Greeks called Mesopotamia, meaning " between two rivers,"
but they applied the name to the northern portion of the
district — the home of the Assyrians. As generally used to-
day, the term Mesopotamia signifies the whole region.
The southern portion, bordering on the Persian Gulf, has
a deep alluvial soil, built up by the yearly deposit of the
rivers. Like the valley of the Nile, it has been the repository
of fine silt. This portion from its capital city Babylon was
called Babylonia. As we might expect, this was the country
first settled because it was the more accessible. Its wide,
monotonous plains, enriched with the fertile mountain loam,
afforded the most productive farm lands in the world.
Herodotus told of their prodigious yield of grain : " This
territory is of all that we know the best by far for producing
grain; as to trees, it does not attempt to bear them, either
fig, or vine or olive, but for producing grain it is so good
that it returns as much as two-hundred-fold for the average.
an(i, when it bears its best, it produces three-hundred-fold. The
blades of the wheat and barley there grew to be four fingers'
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 215
broad; and from millet and sesame seed, how large a tree
grows, I know myself, but shall not record, being well aware
that even what has already been said relating to the crops
produced has been enough to cause disbelief in those who
have not visited Babylonia." Theophrastus wrote: "In
Babylon the wheat fields are regularly mown twice, and then
fed off with beasts to keep down the luxuriance of the leaf;
otherwise the plant does not run to ear. When this is done
the return in lands that are badly cultivated is fiftyfold, while
in those that are well farmed it is a hundredfold."
The land of Babylonia has been happily compared with the
southern half of our state of Louisiana, which it resembles
in marshy districts. Again it might be likened to the Egyptian
Delta, being of course, larger, — something like Denmark in
point of area. Possessing no rocks or mountains, the country
seemed at first to be devoid of building material. It has been
supposed that its primitive people first sheltered themselves
in huts built of reeds which grew abundantly along the river
banks. After awhile it was discovered that clay mud fur-
nished a fair material when shaped into bricks and dried in
the sun. A more enduring brick was later made by baking
the brick in ovens. This oven-baked brick as well as the sun-
dried brick constituted the great building material of Babylonia
for all subsequent time.
The district north of the alluvial line, enclosed by rivers and
mountains, in time became the kingdom of Assyria. This region
differed greatly from the southern land. It was made up of
low ranges on the north, rolled gently to the south, and sup-
plied excellent pasturage. Stone and material suitable to build-
ing purposes were available, but the people, accustomed to the
clay bricks of their old home in Babylonia, never made use of
the more substantial building stuff. Indeed the Assyrians were
not at all of an inventive mind, as another illustration will
plainly show. In Babylonia, because the ground was low and
level, the people were obliged to construct artificial heights for
building sites, thus to escape marshy exhalations and trouble-
some insects. They erected huge piles of sun-dried brick and
crowned these with their palaces and temples.
Now the Assyrians were in the beginning colonists who
had gone out of the mother state to find less populated regions
2I6 THE WORI^d's progress.
farther north. There were hills and elevations in abundance
in Assyria, but holding to the custom they had so long fol-
lowed, they continued to construct great foundations of bricks
for their buildings. It is curious indeed to find them, through-
out their history, expending time, labor and resources to
produce what nature had already provided.
Assyria was somewhat larger than Babylonia, and has
been compared to the state of Illinois in size. While the north-
ern mountains and the Gulf afforded definite boundaries, the
limits to the east and west were never certain and both Baby-
lonians and Assyrians pushed out in each direction as they
became more powerful, contracting again if their strength
weakened. On the west a desert separated them from the
Mediterranean, and while various tribes held the country east
of the Tigris in early times, the Medes later conquered the
region east of Assyria, and Persia reached away to the south-
east.
There are two seasons in these valleys — the rainy period,
lasting from November to March, and the dry season, filling
out the remainder of the year. Babylonia was never subject
to the cold storms of Assyria, and the kings of the latter
country, after they conquered Babylonia, frequently main-
tained winter palaces in the old capital, Babylon. Summer
is intensely hot near the Gulf. In recent years this has been
a serious obstacle to confront those carrying on excavations
here.
In ancient times an extensive system of canals and ditches
made it possible to keep the land under constant cultivation,
thus preventing in a large measure the sand storms that now
spread over the country, causing much suffering and even
death. Under Turkish rule at present, the whole region is
left desolate.
In spite of Herodotus to the contrary, certain kinds of
trees grew in Babylonia. The fig, apple, almond and walnut
were native. The date palm ministered to the wants of the
people in manifold ways. An old Persian poem sung of its
360 uses, while the Greeks claimed that it supplied the Baby-
lonians with bread, wine, vinegar, honey, rope, fuel, wood
for furniture, and food for cattle. A wide variety of grains
and vegetables were produced.
STORY OF BABYI.ONIA AND ASSYRIA. 21/
Wild animals were plentiful. The Mesopotamian lion was
thought milder than its jungle cousin. Buffaloes were
domesticated. Leopards, hyaenas, wild boars, gazelles, foxes
and hares were found, while birds and fishes abounded.
Altogether this was a spot where life was favorable for
man, and it was natural that w'andering tribes that came
thither should soon abandon their roving habits for the surer
livelihood promised by a fixed home.
sargon's standard (with figure of asshur).
2l8 THE world's progress.
CHAPTER III.
Prehistoric Chaldea.
We have already noted that prehistoric periods are those
preceding written records. Uncertainty enters into all
attempts to reconstruct such a period for any people, and
especially has this been true of Babylonia. However, when
the library of Nineveh was unearthed, tablets were discovered
which shed some light on those remote ages.
The land we call Babylonia was once called Chaldea. So
we shall call it during its prehistoric age — as we call the British
Island Britain in the beginning of its history, and later,
England. By the term Chaldea we are to understand that
portion of the valleys which extended around the Persian
Gulf. It was inhabited at the earliest period known. Prob-
ably its first settlers were a branch of the Turanian or Yellow
Race, to which the Chinese, Japanese, Monguls and present-
day Turks belong. That the Chaldeans came from some
other locality into this land is not doubted, but whence
they came is not known.
The southern part of Chaldea was called Shumir — the
Hebrews writing it Shinar; the land immediately north they
called Accad. The dwellers in both districts came from the
same stock and spoke practically the same language. The
name Accad means mountains, or highlands, and it has been
surmised that it may have attached to the inhabitants from
some earlier home.
These early people may have migrated to Chaldea five
or six thousand years before the Christian era. Of their
coming and first settlements, nothing is known. When we
first learn of them, they had reached quite a degree of civiliza-
tion, having canals for irrigating the lands unreached by the
river; they had also devised the cuneiform system of writ-
ing— an advance on the picture system, earlier in use.
The history of their strange symbols was probably this : in
ages bygone they had invented a system of picture writing,
as all primitive people seem to have done. As they advanced.
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 2Jg
too much time was required to copy the elaborate pictures
in their entirety, and so the principal outlines were used to
represent the pictures themselves. When these people
migrated to Chaldea, and were reduced to clay tablets on
which to write, it was easier to make straight lines than
curved ones. In this way the written language continued
to undergo changes until it was eventually made up of wedge-
shaped symbols, one of the clear results of the use of the clay
tablets.
Our principal knowledge concerning the Chaldeans per-
tains to their religion, which is believed to have been one of
the earliest religions of the world.
The religious instinct seems to have been inborn with
man. Some form and degree of worship has been found among
all primitive people and is cruder or more elevated according
to the stage of development. Primitive man felt himself
able to cope with many of the conditions around him, but
he soon found that the very agencies which helped might
also injure him. The sun, whose light and warmth gave
life to his growing crops, might also wither them with its
intense heat. The rain which renewed and refreshed the
fields, might come in torrents and lay them low. Gradually
all these agencies were regarded as Beings, which must be
importuned. The religion of the Chaldeans taught man how
to guard himself against the harmful forces in the world, and
every animate and inanimate thing was endowed with a spirit.
A series of tablets treating of this ancient religion was
recovered by Rassam, and they fall into three divisions : those
treating of ** Evil Spirits," others concerning diseases, and
last, those devoted to prayers and hymns of praise.
The Accadian conceived of the earth as resembling a
huge, inverted bowl. The thickness represented the earth's
crust ; the hollow beneath was thought of as a bottomless pit,
destined to be the final dwelling place of man, and was the
abode of demons. Above the earth were two heavens; the
higher, supported by a lofty mountain: the lower containing
seven kind and friendly planets, which wandered at will
through its wide domains. Opposed to these were seven fiery
phantoms. Over all dwelt the great Spirit Ana..
220 THK world's PROGRSISS.
" Between the lower heaven and the surface of the earth
is the atmospheric region, the reahn of Mermer, the Wind,
where he drives the clouds, rouses the storms, and whence
he pours down the rain, which is stored in the great reservoir
of Ana, in the heavenly Ocean. As to the earthly Ocean, it
is fancied as a broad river, flowing all around the edge of
the imaginary inverted bowl; in its waters dwells Ea, the
great Spirit of the Earth and Waters, either in the form of
a fish, whence he is frequently called " Ea the fish," or " the
exalted fish,* or on a magnificent ship, with which he travels
around the earth, guarding and protecting it.
" The minor spirits of the earth are not much spoken
of except in a body, a sort of host or legion. All the more
terrible are the seven spirits of the abyss, the Maskim, of
whom it is said that, although their seat is in the depths of
the earth, yet their voice resounds on the heights also; they
reside at will in the immensity of space, * nbt enjoying a
good name either in heaven or on earth.' Their greatest
delight is to subvert the orderly course of nature, to cause
earthquakes, inundations, ravaging tempests." ^
The Maskim were ever feared and hated as is shown by
the following, translated from one of the tablets:
" They are seven ! they are seven ! — Seven are they in
the depths of Ocean, — seven they are, disturbers of the face
of Heaven. — ^They arise from the depths of Ocean, from hidden
lurking-places. — They spread like snares. — Male they are not,
female they are not. Wives they have not, children are not
born to them. — Order they know not, nor beneficence; —
prayers and supplications they hear not. Horses grown in
the bowels of the mountains — foes of EA — they are throne-
bearers of the gods — ^they sit in the roads and make them un-
safe.— The fiends! The fiends! They are seven, they are
seven, seven are they!
"Spirit of Heaven, be they conjured! Spirit of Earth,
be they conjured ! "
»Ragozin: Cnaldea.
STORY O^ BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 221
A Charm..
Seven are they, they are seven;
In the caverns of ocean they dwell,
They are clothed in the lightnings of heaven.
Of their growth the deep waters can tell;
Seven are they, they are seven.
Broad is their way and their course is wide,
Where the seeds of destruction they sow,
O'er the tops of the hills where they stride.
To lay waste the smooth highways below, —
Broad is their way and their course is wide.
Man they are not, nor womankind,
For in fury they sweep from the main,
And have wedded no wife but the wind.
And no child have begotten but pain, —
Man they are not, nor womankind.
Fear is not in them, nor awe;
Supplication they heed not, nor prayer.
For they know no compassion nor law,
And are deaf to the cries of despair, —
Fear is not in them, nor awe.
Cursed they are, they are cursed.
They are foes to wise EA'S name ;
By the whirlwind are all things dispersed
On the paths of the flash of their flame, —
Cursed are they, they are cursed.
Spirit of Heaven, oh help! Help, oh Spirit of Earth!
They are seven, thrice said they are seven;
For the gods they are Bearers of Thrones,
But for men they are Breeders of Dearth
And the authors of sorrows and moans.
They are seven, thrice said they are seven.
Spirit of Heaven, oh help! Help, oh Spirit of Earth!
1—16 — Rendered into verse by Dyer,
222 THE world's PROGRESS.
Besides these seven hated ones, there were numberless
demons who could work all manner of evil for man. They
were invisible and brought sickness, sorrow, insanity, and
grief. No house was secure against them, and no bolt strong
enough to keep them out.
To contend against so much evil, it was necessary to
employ conjurers and those skilled in magic, who by incanta-
tions and mixtures of herbs might discover the demons and
put them to flight. Like the Egyptians, the Chaldeans
believed that when one was ill, a demon had taken possession
of his body, which must be driven out before recovery would
be possible. As a result of this belief, the science of medicine
never developed in Babylonia. Even in its advanced period,
magicians treated the sick.
Charms and talismans were in great demand to ward off
demons. They were worn by the living and adorned the
dead. Many articles of furniture were made to serve two
purposes — as household conveniences or ornaments, and talis-
mans. Thus the winged bulls which have been found guard-
ing the portals of royal palaces were placed there to keep out
demons who would manage in some way to creep in unless
prevented by eternal vigilance.
It was believed that certain of these demons were so for-
bidding in aspect that should they but catch sight of their
own faces, they would be frightened away. Therefore a most
dreadful demon was fashioned, as terrible and fierce as human
ingenuity could conceive. This impersonated the south-west
wind — the wind which brought burning heat and drought in
its wake. An image thus made was placed in southwest
windows, with the hope that the approaching demon might
look upon himself and flee in terror.
As time went on, the Chaldeans progressed in their
religious beliefs, and the third series of tablets record prayers
and hymns of adoration.
Nothing was more natural than that they should worship
the sun, as a manifestation of divinity which provided heat,
light and life itself, for the children of the earth. Some
of these hymns are beautiful in their conception.
" O Sun, I have called unto thee in the bright heavens.
In the shadow of the cedar art thou; Thy feet are on the
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 223
summits — The countries have wished for thee, they have
longed for thy coming, O Lord! Thy radiant hght illumines
all countries. Thou makest lies to vanish, thou destroyest
the noxious influence of portents, omens, spells, dreams and
evil apparitions; thou turnest wicked plots to a happy issue.
" O Sun ! thou hast stepped forth from the background
of heaven, thou hast pushed back the bolts of the brilliant
heaven, — yea, the gate of heaven. O Sun! above the land
thou hast raised thy head! O Sun! thou hast covered the
immeasurable space of heaven and countries ! "
The sun disappeared at evening tide, and during the night
contended with the spirits of darkness. Some other protec-
tion was needed for man while darkness reigned. So fire was
brought into existence, and was also regarded as worthy of
worship :
" Thou who drivest away the evil Maskim, who furtherest
the well-being of life, who strikest the breast of the wicked
with terror, — Fire, the destroyer of foes, dread weapon which
drivest away Pestilence."
Certain wandering Turanian tribes today cling to a
religion much like the one so briefly described. Like their
remote ancestors, they have conjurers instead of priests.
When they had reached this stage of development, the
Chaldeans were overpowered by a vast barbaric horde.
The Story of Genesis Relative to the First Settlement
IN Shumir.
"And the whole earth was of one language, and of one
speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east,
that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt
there. And they said one to another, Go to, let us make
brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for
stone, and slime had they for mortar. And they said, Go
to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach
unto heaven ; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered
abroad upon the face of the whole earth. And the Lord came
down to see the city and the tower which the children of
men builded. And the Lord said. Behold, the people is one,
and they have all one language; and this tfiey begin to do;
and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they
have imagined to do. Go to, let us go down and there con-
224 THE world's progress.
found their language, that they may not understand one
another's speech. So the Lord scattered them abroad from
thence upon the face of all the earth; and they left off to
build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel ;^
because the Lord did there confound the language of all the
earth; and from thence did the Lord scatter them abroad
upon the face of all the earth.
" And Nimrod was a mighty hunter before the Lord ;
wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter be-
fore the Lord. And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel,
and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar,
Out of that land went forth Asshur, and 6uilded Nineveh,
and the city Rehoboth, and Calah. And Resen between
Nineveh and Calah; the same is a great city.
" And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of
Haran, his son's son, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son
Abram's wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of
the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came
unto Haran, and dwelt there." — Genesis 10 and IL
The first great Semitic invasion took place probably about
the beginning of the fourth millennium B.C., and it seems impos-
sible to assign to it a more definite date. The later Babylonians,
like the Chinese, gave great antiquity to their nation, reckoning
back into hundreds of thousands of years. Their beginnings
belonged to so remote a time that adding years inconceivably
was but another way of saying that certain events happened
very long ago, so long, indeed, that no record or monument
remained to give evidence of events which had survived only
in stories handed down, from father to son, for thousands of
generations.
Like the Hebrews and Arabs, these people belonged to the
Semitic race, and from whence they came has long been a
matter of conjecture. Scholars are now agreed that Arabia
had been their home and that there they had lived as shepherds
and herdsmen. They poured in overwhelming forces into the
' This is a late popular etymology. Babel means "the gate of God," and
has no conuer^tios with the Hebrew verb balal "to confound."
STORY OP BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 225
land of Chaldea, killing some of the inhabitants, driving others
out of the country, and assimilating the rest.
The Chaldeans had reached a much higher degree of cul-
ture than their conquerors, who rapidly took on the civiliza-
tion of their adopted country. As in England the Saxon and
Norman for some generations after the conquest pursued each
his native life and customs, little influenced by the other, so in
Chaldea at first the Semitic herdsman followed his pastoral
life outside the brick-walled cities of the Chaldeans.
Some have thought that an invasion of Cushites, or Ethi-
opians, had preceded the invasion of the Semites in Chaldea,
and have claimed that the language, customs and culture in
the land when conquered by the Semites was the result of a
blending of Turanian and Ethiopian. The theory has been
vigorously opposed by other authorities who contend that the
invading Semites found only pure Turanian stock. However
that may be, the civilization and culture of Chaldea, whether
simply Turanian, or Turanian-Cushite, was soon taken on by
the newcomers. Adopting the Chaldean language, they used
it for all their inscriptions, writings and literature. Even
after the speech of the people had become quite a different
tongue, as a result of its assimilation with the Semitic, still in
all written records the early Chaldean language — or Sumerian,
as it is generally called — was alone used. Assyriologists have
often noted that "while the language was Sumerian, the spirit
of the writings was Semitic."
Because the land of Chaldea was so accessible, and offered
advantages so superior to surrounding countries — ^plentiful
water and a fertile soil, — it became a veritable bee-hive of
humanity. When the Semites first came thither, they were
a fierce, warlike people; but soon, under new conditions, they
became peace-loving, as the Turanians before them had been.
Shortly they were unable to hold the valley against new tribes
that unceasingly swarmed into the country.
Prior to 2000 B.C. Ashur had been settled probably in part
at least, by emigrants from the south who may have united with
other Semites from North Mesopotamia and in time they
founded the state of Assyria. Somewhat later, the ancestors of
the Hebrews, according to one of the O. T. traditions, de-
parted from the land of Chaldea for Harran in Mesopotamia,
226 THE world's progress.
and later entered Canaan, on the east coast of the Mediter-
ranean Sea. Each of these little bands founded states which
developed such peculiar characteristics, that after the lapse
of a few ages, it would scarcely have occurred to an observer
that the ancestry, early environment, and traditions of all
had been the same.
It was not strange, then, that the Hebrews of later time,
trying to account for the diversity of languages and nations,
made this swarming valley the site of the scattering of the
tribes and the confusion of tongues.
Those who remained in Chaldea became a peaceful farm-
ing people, caring not at all for war. The Assyrians, while
of the same stock, developed very differently. There were
several reasons for this. First, their country was less access-
ible than Chaldea, whose shore was washed by the Persian
Gulf, and so it suffered less from invasions, and was allowed
to keep a more purely Semitic civilization. Again, having
gone out from Chaldea before they became devoted to peace-
ful pursuits, the Assyrians retained and fostered their original
warlike dispositions. The more temperate climate of Assyria
was more invigorating and produced men of greater endurance
than did the kingdom to the south.
Both Chaldea and Assyria alike, developed small states,
each led by a city in which had been built a temple sacred
to some local deity. Each community was presided over by one
who combined the duties of king and priest.
Such was the condition of affairs when the first written
records, more or less complete, bring some degree of certainty
and less conjecture into the development of these nations.
And here we arrive at the beginning of Mesopotamian history,
properly so-called.
A JAR-SHAPED COFFIN OF CLAY.
STORY OP BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 327
CHAPTER IV.
City-States Before the Rise of Babylon.
We have seen that the Chaldeans were in time assimilated
with the invading Semites, producing eventually a new nation.
It is not to be supposed that this was at once accomplished,
or that the dawn of authentic history found such a process
completed. Rather, the Chaldeans held tenaciously to the south,
the Semites kept farther to the north, and for many centuries
the two races fought for dominance in the valley.
As early as 4500 B.C., a record inscribes one as "king of
Kengi," but his kingdom probably included but a few cities
added to his own.
Several cities had been founded at a remote time and these
now grew rapidly in importance. Each was built around
a temple dedicated to some particular divinity. Eridu wor-
shipped the god EA, father of waters; Ur was sacred to
Sin, the moon-god, and later kings, of the dynasty of Ur,
added the name Sin to their own, as for example, Ine-Sin,
Pur-Sin. Larsam was sacred to the sun-god Shamash ; Uruk
to the goddess Ishtar; Nippur to En-lil, father of the gods,
and so on. Each city believed that its god — Bel or Lord —
was the greatest of all gods, and often its inhabitants were
inspired to go out to conquer other cities and territories in
order to extend the prestige of the local deity. Probably at
the same time the people were stimulated to fight because cer-
tain cities had grown up in the very heart of the fertile valley,
while others had been obliged to locate in poorer sections.
Naturally these last looked with envious eyes upon the richer
soil of their neighbors, and desired to win it for themselves.
Each city watched for the first sign of weakness in her sister
cities, and when it appeared, tried at once to incorporate them
into her own domains.
The political history of the Euphrates valley before the
228 THE world's progress.
dominance of Babylon is the history of these cities as they
grew into httle states. Some grew strong; others weakened
and became tributary to the more vigorous few.
En-shag-kush-ana, " Lord of Kengiu," was the name of
the first king to appear in the Babylonian records. Erech
was probably his capital, and Nippur the religious center of
his little kingdom. We have already connected Nippur with
the excavations made by the University of Pennsylvania. The
ruins there unearthed have enabled scholars to understand in
the main sacred cities of Babylonia. En-shag-kush-ana was
priest as well as king. Although his race was not mentioned,
he was probably a Chaldean, like the people over whom he
ruled.
A little to the north, a Semitic kingdom with the city Kish
as its head, was growing rapidly in power, and threatened
to absorb even Erech itself. On this account, Chaldeans
attacked it and gained the victory, whereupon their god,
En-lil of Nippur was celebrated in festival and his temple
received numerous trophies of the triumph, since he had
enabled those of the south to overcome the cruder Semitic
city.
Their defeat only led the Semitic kingdom of Kish to
strengthen its forces, and about 4000 b. c, under leadership
of Lugalzaggisi, the vigor of the new race overcame the nearly
expended force of the Chaldeans. This conquering Semitic
king set forth his position thus : " Lugalzaggisi, king of
Erech, king of the world, priest of Ana, hero of Nidaba, son
of Ukush, he who is looked upon favorably by the faithful
eye of En-lil.
" When En-lil, Lord of the lands, invested Lugalzaggisi
with the kingdom of the world, and granted him success
before the world, when he filled the land with his power, and
subdued the country from the rise of the sun to the setting
sun — at that time he straightened his path from the lower
sea of the Tigris and Euphrates to the upper sea, and granted
him the dominion of everything from the rising sun to the
setting of the sun, and caused the countries to dwell in
peace." *
For some generations the Semites now held the valley
and the Chaldeans are lost sight of in surviving records.
» Hilprecht : Old Babylonian Inscriptions.
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA, 229
Then a southern kingdom, Shirpurla, with Sunglr its chief
city, became strong enough to throw off Semitic rule. This
victory of the Chaldeans w^as widely celebrated in the annals
of the waning race. Not only did they now gain the upper
hand of all the cities in the valley, but they pushed into Elam,
a kingdom to the east and dominated both it an^ its tributary
lands.
WTiile comparisons in history may sometimes be mis-
leading, they often aid the student to better understand cer-
tain conditions. There is some similarity between these two
races in this valley contending for supremacy — the stronger
being sometimes held in check, the weaker gradually losing
ground — in certain aspects, it calls to mind the period in
English history when Saxons, Jutes and Angles struggled for
leadership. The Saxons had developed the higher civiliza-
tion; the Danes were the more vigorous and aggressive.
Sometimes the Saxons would be able to set up their king,
again the Danes would enthrone one of their number. Now
the waning light of Saxon power would seem to be well-nigh
spent, when suddenly it would burst out again with a flame
that would illumine all England, only again to be eclipsed by
the fresh strength of the other nation. Not to push the com-
parison further, either country offers a fair example of the
usual course events take whenever two races, somewhat equal
in strength, seek to gain the upper hand in a given territory.
A northern city, hitherto unmentioned, was to give the
palm once more to the Semitic. Agade, the home-city of
Shargani-shar-ali, or Sargon I.
^Many legends cluster around this king, an early Semitic
hero. Since our knowledge of him comes mainly through
legendary sources, it is difficult to separate the grain from the
chaff. A tradition which in the course of history has been
related many times of men in many lands, was told first of
this Semitic king.
" Sargon, the powerful king, King of Agade, am I.
" My mother w'as of low degree, my father I did not know.
" The brother of my father dwelt in the mountain.
" My city was Azupirani, situated on the banks of the
Euphrates.
" (My) humble mother conceived me ; in secret she brought
me forth.
230 THE) WORLD'S PROGREISS.
" She placed me in a bask-boat of rushes ; with pitch she
closed my door.
, " She gave me over to the river, which did not (rise) over
me.
" The river bore me along ; to Akki, the irrigator, it car-
ried me.
" Akki, the irrigator, . . . brought me to land.
" Akki, the irrigator, reared me as his own son.
" Akki, the irrigator, appointed me his gardener.
" While I was gardener, Ishtar looked on me with love.
" Four years I ruled the kingdom."'
Sargon I. and his son, Naram Sin, had great capacity for
organization. They were prolific builders, and bricks have
been found bearing their names and titles. The material for
their temples they brought some distance — the famous cedars
of Lebanon forming the beams. Sargon was called " Lord
of Nippur, Shirpurla, Kish, Babylon and Uruk. Naram Sin
extended his sway to the Mediterranean on the west, east into
Elam, and south into Arabia and the isles of the Persian Gulf.
He took for the first time the title : " King of the Four World-
Regions. His vast kingdom thus built up disappeared, how-
ever, as quickly as it came into being, and after some changes,
Ur became the capital center. Three thousand eight hundred
B. c. has been accepted as the date of Sargon's reign and this
is the first definite date in Babylonian history.
The kings of the Ur dynasty erected several temples, and
because Ur was easy of access, they imported many of their
building materials. Dolerite was brought from Arabia, cedar
from Syria, gold and precious stones from the east. This
town was sacred to Sin, the moon-god, and several hymns
praising this deity have been found.
Isin, Erech, and other cities strove now for leadership, and
internal dissensions offered opportunity for the Elamites on
the east, now advancing on a wave of prosperity, to invade
the land. It is known that they advanced as far as Erech,
and carried off a statue of the goddess Nana. They set up
their own king, whose line continued on the throne for some
time. One of these invading kings called himself : " exalter of
3 Trans, quoted by Goodspeed : Hist, of the Bab. and Assy., p. 62.
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 23I
Ur, king of Larsa, king of Sumer and Accad." Under Elam-
ite administration, temples were built and the religious and
commercial centers continued to grow.
Of this whole period Maspero has said : " We have here
the dust of history rather than history itself; here an isolated
individual makes his appearance in the record of his name,
to vanish when we attempt to lay hold of him ; there the stem
of a dynasty which breaks abruptly off, pompous preambles,
devout formulas, dedications of objects of buildings, here or
there the account of some battle, or the indication of some
foreign country with which relations of friendship or com-
merce were maintained — these are the scanty materials of
which to construct a narrative."
To summarize the period as a whole, we may note that
thus far no united kingdom had been evolved. To weld that
together was the work of the next period. This was, on the
other hand, an age of city-states, each one contesting for
leadership. While the struggle began with the mere hope of
annexing cities in the valley, it expanded to include outlying
lands as well. The assimilation of the two races was, generally
speaking, effected, and henceforth the Chaldeans disappear as
a distinct element of the country, having been absorbed polit-
ically by the Semites.
A Part op a Hymn to the Moon-God.^
(Composed in the city of Ur before the age of Abraham.)
Father, long-suffering and full of forgiveness,
Whose hands uphold the life of all mankind !
First born, omnipotent, whose heart is immensity.
There is none who may fathom it!
In heaven, who is supreme?
Thou alone. Thou art supreme.
On earth, who is supreme?
Thou alone. Thou art supreme.
As for Thee, Thy will is made known in heaven,
And the angels bow their faces.
As for Thee, Thy will is made known upon earth,
And the spirits kiss the ground.
•Translated bySayce.
232 THS WORI^d'S progress.
CHAPTER V.
Dominance of Babyi^on, 2100-1100 b.c.
In early times Babylon had not been a city of sufficient
size to demand royal attention. No king had thought it of
enough importance to include with his enumerated possessions,
although in all probability, it was founded as early as 4000
B.C. — perhaps earlier still. Sumu-abi was its first king, but
of him and his immediate successors, we know little. The
sixth king was destined to bring greatness to his city and to
the whole country — for it was he who united the many states
of Babylonia into one strong kingdom and drove the usurping
Elamites from the throne.
"Hammurabi, sixth king of Babylon, ruled in the twenty-
first century B.C. His reign and the reigns of his family were
regarded by the Babylonians as their "Golden Age." Down
to the last days of Babylon, Babylonian kings emulated his ex-
ample, modelling even their inscriptions after his.
How Hammurabi freed the land from Elamite rule is not
known, but his name was soon established as an able soldier.
He assumed the titles: King of Sumer and Accad, King of
the Four-Quarters of the World, King of Babylon. Having
annexed all the little city-states to his original kingdom of
Babylon, the capital city gave its name to the whole country.
To make this union lasting, Hammurabi himself appointed
officers of administration for each political division of the
kingdom, and so made the entire system dependent upon the
government at the capital. The pre-eminence now given the
capital turned the tide of commerce and traffic from other
places and made Babylon the great center, not only for matters
of government, but for industrial and social life as well.
Hammurabi was not only a distinguished warrior, but a
statesman. When he had made secure his recently united king-
dom, he turned to internal improvements. A post-envoy sys-
tem for royal messages was established. This tended to make
the roads and highways between different parts of the coun-
try safe. He established royal granaries in the valley
STORY Olf BABYI.ONIA AND ASSYRIA. 233
of the Euphrates — as we have found them maintained
in the valley of the Nile — to store grain for use in time
of famine.
As each succeeding city was exalted to leadership in
Babylonia, we have found that the patron deity of that com-
munity rose to highest place in the pantheon. Originally,
Marduk was accorded a minor position in the category of
gods. By enabling Babylon to gain supremacy over all other
cities, he had now proven himself greatest of all gods ; so while
Nippur and other religious centers, long established, retained
their deities and their cults, there came forward a large priest-
hood devoted to the worship of Marduk. These priests, cen-
tered as they were around Babylon, probably had much to do
with that city's rapid progress in becoming the center of cul-
ture, art and literary effort. Long years after, when the kings
of warlike Assyria had added Babylonia to their num.erous
possessions, they turned to the archives of this city for its
literary productions and one of the most productive periods
was the reign of Hammurabi.
Perhaps the most stupendous undertaking of this king was
the construction of a vast canal which reclaimed a large tract
of land, long unproductive. An inscription left by him has
been found, and sets forth his effort in this fashion:
" Hammurabi, the powerful king, king of Babylonia,
. . when Anu and Bel gave unto me to rule the land
of Sumer and Accad, and with their scepter filled my hands,
I dug the canal Hammurabi, the Blessing-of-Men, which
bringeth the water of the overflow into the land of Sumer and
Accad. Its banks upon both sides I made arable land; much
seed I scattered upon it. Lasting water I provided for the
land of Sumer and Accad. The land of Sumer and Accad, its
separated peoples I united, with blessings and abundance I
endowed them, in peaceful dwellings I made them to live."*
He was a tireless builder, spending much care in repairing
old temples and constructing new ones. Indeed King Ham-
murabi stands forth, after four thousand years have passed,
as a ruler of exceptional executive ability. Prosperity long
attended his people because of the personal supervision he
gave to all branches of the administration.
> Quoted in Rogers : Hist, of Baby, and Assy., 391.
234 THE world's progress.
Among the lasting benefits assured his subjects was means
of getting legal redress. A court of appeals was instituted
at Babylon to which any citizen might come to state his wrongs.
He codified the laws of the land in 282 laws and inscribed them
on monoliths, one of which was found ten years ago in Susa,
whither it had been carried by the Elamites about 1100 B.C.
In the prologue to the Code he states, "When Marduk sent me
to rule the people ... I established law and justice in
the land and promoted the welfare of the people."
Long after his death his son and successors reaped the
benefits of Hammurabi's splendid rule, and the memory of
his strength and capacity held the country in check as long
as his house endured. Probably for some time before the
close of this prosperous era, which came to an end cir. 1700 B.C.,
mountaineers threatened the eastern borders, and the death of
the last king of the dynasty was the occasion for an invasion
of the Kassites, a people who emerged from Elam-Media.
They seem to have been one of the many bands of moun-
taineers who gained a livelihood from the products of
the mountainous regions and by frequent plundering raids
directed against those living on either side of their strongholds.
They well knew that Babylon's long devotion to the arts of
peace had weakened her military strength, and regarded the
time as favorable for winning the fertile valleys for themselves.
At all events, they placed their king upon the throne. The in-
habitants of southern Babylonia were never possessed of strong
patrotism. So long as the land was allowed to rest in peace and
the taxes were not increased, there seems to have been no especial
interest on the part of the people generally as to who wore the
crown. The material development of the country did not suffer
long on this occasion, and for nearly 600 years the Kassite dy-
nasty ruled in Babylon. They rapidly took on the culture of
their newly acquired state, built temples and directed their at-
tention to the prosperity of the land. As time went on, they
wellnigh ceased to be regarded as usurpers. One of their kings
set forth his titles thus : "I am Agumkakrime, the son of Tash-
shigiirumash ; the illustrious descendant of god Shuqamuna ;
called by Anu and Bel, Ea and Marduk, Sin and Shamash; the
powerful hero of Ishtar, the warrior among the gods.
"I am a king of wisdom and prudence ; a king who grants
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 235
hearing and pardon ; the son of Tashshigurumash ; the descend-
ant of Abiru . . . the crafty warrior ; the first son of the
great Agum ; an illustrious, royal scion who holds the reins of
the nation (and is) a mighty shepherd. , . .
"I am king of the country of Kashshu and of the Akka-
dians; king of the wide country of Babylon, who settles the
numerous people in Ashnunak ; the King of Padan and Alman ;
the king of Gutium, a foolish nation; (a king) who makes obe-
dient to him the four regions, and a favorite of the great gods."
This enumeration of tributary lands shows these kings to
have been good warriors.
For a hundred years before the end of the Kassite dynasty,
the kingdom of Assyria, founded before 3000 b.c. in all prob-
ability, was growing in strength and importance. When the
Babylonians were unable to hold out against invading kings,
naturally the Assyrians felt in no way bound to render the
tribute they had paid Babylonia to usurping foreigners, and
took advantage of the occasion to assert their sovereignty.
As has been previously noted, the Assyrians were of pure
Semitic stock, and, as their own artists represent them, appar-
ently had not intermarried with the Chaldeans, as the Semites
farther south had done. They were warlike in disposition, and
knew neither the luxuries of the southern state nor its enervat-
ing climate. They had even become powerful enough to make
treaties with the rulers of Babylon regarding disputed lands,
and this fact in itself was significant. For some considerable
period after the invasion of the Kassites, Assyria was concerned
with her own affairs, but the time was coming when she would
make her power felt in the mother country.
Generally speaking, the Kassite rule was an age of peace.
Among the Tell el Amama letters, unearthed upon the ancient
site of the " Horizon of the Sun's Disk," correspondence has
been found between some of these Asiatic rulers and the kings
of Egypt. The letters open with the preliminaries customary in
oriental correspondence : " To Kadashman-Bel. kmg of Kar-
dunyash, my brother; thus saith Amenophis, the great king,
the king of Egj'^pt, thy brother: with me it is well. May it be
well with thee, with thy house, with thy wives, with thy children,
with thy nobles, with thy horses and with thy chariots, and
with thy land may it be well; with me may it be well, with
236 THE world's progress.
my house ^ith my wives, with my children, with my nobles,
with my horses, with my chariots, with my troops, and with
my land, may it be very well." Regarding this particular letter
and others of the same period, Rogers says : " No historical
material of great moment is offered in these letters. They
reveal a period of relative peace and prosperity, and deal, in
considerable measure, with the little courtesies and amenities of
life. It is, for example, curious to find the Babylonian king
reproving the king of Egypt for not having sent an ambassador
to inquire for him when he was ill. When kings had time for
such courtesies, and could only excuse themselves for failing
to observe them on the ground of their ignorance of the illness,
and the great distance to be covered on the journey, there must
have been freedom from war and from all distress at home and
abroad."*
It was not Jestined to long continue peaceful, however.
By 1285 B.C. the Assyrian king felt himself powerful enough
to invade Babylonia. Penetrating even to the capital itself,
he carried away the statue of the god Marduk — a great indig-
nity. He allowed the Babylonia king to become his vassal.
This state of affairs continued for seven years, whereupon the
Babylonians succeeded in driving the Assyrians north again,
taking from them some of the territory they had seized. When
next the Assyrians threatened, the Semites instituted a revolu-
tion, forced the Kassites from the throne, and established the
dynasty of Isin.
Now began the struggle for supremacy in the valley, waged
by two great nations. The strength of Babylonia was waning,
but their king, Nebuchadnezzar I., held the kingdom together
with a strong hand. He only delayed the inevitable. The
future belonged to the JTiore vigorous kingdom to the north,
and to her power Babylonia soon fell subservient.
To follow the main thread of activity in the Euphrates
valley, we must now turn to Assyria, while the life so charac-
teristic of Babylon continued until it could be said : " No capital
in the world has ever been the center of so much power, wealth,
and culture for so vast a period of time."
"Rogers : Hist, of Baby, and Assy., Vol I., p, 418.
WixGED Lion.
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 237
CHAPTER VI.
Beginnings of the Assyrian Empire.
The beginnings of the Assyrian state are lost in obscurity.
Nineveh was possibly founded before 3000 b. c, but like
Babylon, its origin is not known. Asshur was long the im-
portant city of the country, overshadowing the later capital.
About 1490 B. c. Thutmose III. pushed into Asia and
roused the western portion of that continent with his conquests.
Assyria, like many other weak states, hastened to send gifts
to the conquering pharaoh. These signified submission, and
Thothmes gave no further evidences of his military power.
The next mention of Assyria occurs when the state had become
sufficiently important to enter into a treaty with the Kassite
king of Babylonia, regarding disputed territories. As we have
already noted, Assyria, long subservient to the older kingdom,
felt in no way bound to submit to the foreign rule of Kassite
princes, and had already established her own independence,
which was acknowledged by the Babylonian king when he
negotiated a treaty with her. Later, the daughter of an As-
syrian king was married to the king of Babylonia. Their son
came to the throne at an early age, and the Babylonians, see-
ing an intrigue to allow Assyrian influences to dominate their
land, made way with the boy-king, substituting another in his
place. Thereupon the Assyrian ruler, grandfather of the
murdered prince, invaded Babylonia, killed the monarch popu-
larly crowned, and placed his own candidate upon the throne.
The result of this Assyrian interference was not immediately
important, but it was the first of a long series of difficulties
between the two countries, which ended ultimately in the recog-
nition of the Assyrian king as ruler of Babylonia as well.
About 1290 B. c, troubles having again arisen, the northern
king came once more to the city of Babylon, this time carrying
away the statue of tlie god Marduk, as we have already seen.
He left Assyrian officials in the land as his representatives.
Seven years later, these were driven out by a popular uprising
of the Babylonians, who seized certain outlying districts which
1—17
^38 THE world's progress.
had recently been appropriated by the Assyrians. When the
Kassite princes were finally dethroned, Nebuchadnezzar I., of
the dynasty of Isin, was strong enough to hold the Babylonian
state intact against the power which constantly threatened at
the north.
To this point we had come in the preceding chapter, and
this recast of the situation is made that we may have its essen-
tial features clearly in mind.
Coming now to the reign of Tiglath-Pileser I., 1 120 B.C., we
meet one of the great warriors of antiquity, and with his admin-
istration, a new era opened for Assyria. The first five years of his
reign were occupied with campaigns to the north, east, and
west, in which directions tribes had been menacing the borders
of his kingdom. In these campaigns we see the beginnings
of those cruel, relentless punishments, amounting often to mere
savagery, — which fill the pages of Assyrian history. These
were meted out to all who failed to submit to Assyrian arms.
An inscription commemorating the victories of the warrior
says : " With their corpses I strewed the mountain passes and
the heights. I took away their property, a countless booty.
Six thousand warriors, the remnant of their army, who had
fled before my arms, embraced my feet. I carried them away
and counted them among the inhabitants of my own land."
And again : " In those days, . . . Asshur, the Lord, sent
me, who knows no victor in war, no rival in battle, whose rule
is righteous over the four quarters of the world, towards dis-
tant kingdoms on the shores of the Upper Sea, which knew
not submission, and I went forth. Across impracticable heights
and through precipitous defiles the inside of which no king
had beheld before, I passed. Through sixteen mountain ridges
I marched in my chariot where the ground was good ; where it
was inaccessible, I cleared away with axes, and bridges for
the passage of my troops I constructed excellently well. I
crossed the Euphrates. . . . Twenty-three kings of the
land of Nairi, assembled their chariots and troops in the
midst of their countries and came forth to do battle against
me. By the impetuous onslaught of my mighty arms I con-
quered them. I destroyed their numerous armies like Raman's
thundershower ; with the corpses of their warriors I strewed
the mountain heights and the enclosures of their cities as with
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 239
straw. Their 120 chariots I destroyed in the battle; sixty kings
of the lands of Nairi, with those who had come to their assist-
ance, I pursued to the Upper Sea. Their great cities I took,
their spoils, their possessions I carried off, their towns I burned
with fire, I destroyed, laid them waste, made heaps of them and
land for the plough. Numerous herds of steeds, colts, calves,
and implements without number I carried home. The kings
of the lands of the Nairi my hand captured alive, all of them.
To these same kings I granted favor. Captive and bound, I
released them before Shamash, my lord, and made them swear
allegiance forever. Their children, the offspring of their
royalty, I took as hostages. I imposed on them a tribute of
1,200 steeds and 2,000 bulls and dismissed them to their re-
spective countries. . . . The vast lands of Nairi I took in
all their extent, and all their kings I brought low to my feet."
When five years, filled with similar campaigns, had passed,
a large number of tribes paid tribute to Assyria. Before this
period, Calab had served as capital. Tiglath-Pileser now re-
built Asshur. Rare trees were brought from conquered lands,
to beautify the town. Temples were restored, to the honor
of the gods. Of the restoration of the temple of Ana and
Adad, the king caused to be inscribed : " I built it from founda-
tion to roof larger and grander than before, and erected also
two great towers, fitting ornaments of their great divinities.
The splendid temple, a brilliant and magnificent dwelling, the
habitation of their joys, the house for their delight, shining as
bright as the stars on heaven's firmament and richly decorated
with ornaments through the skill of my artists, I planned,
devised, and thought out, built and completed. I made its
interior brilliant like the dome of the heavens; decorated its
walls like the splendor of the rising stars, and make it grand
with resplendent brilliancy. I reared its temple towers to
heaven, and completed its roof with burned brick; located
therein the upper terrace containing the chamber of their great
divinities; and led into the interior Anu and Adad, the great
gods, and made them to dwell in their lofty house, thus glad-
dening the heart of their great divinities.'"
The memory of this stern warrior lived long after his death,
holding tribes in subjection and enabling, his successors to rule
> Quoted in Goodspeed, p. 171.
240 THE world's progress.
in comparative peace. The greatness of the future kingdom
has been attributed in no small measure to the foundations laid
by Tiglath-Pileser I.
A period of reaction followed. Tribute, which had been
paid only for fear of a strong, well disciplined army, was no
longer forthcoming. Babylonia and Assyria have left so
few records for these years that they are almost sure to have
been years of inaction. On the alluvial bottoms of Babylonia, a
new dynasty arose, known as the dynasty of the Sea Lands.
Both the rulers and the subjects they governed were com-
paratively newcomers, who easily gained the upper hand in the
decadent state, especially as no interference came from
Assyria,
While the inertia of Babylonia allowed the latest comer to
rule, so the inaction of Assyria allowed countries on the west —
Syria and Palestine — to gain strength. On the north, the
Armenians, a nation of traders, extended their territories and
their commercial affairs.
In 950 B. c. Tiglath-Pileser II. became king. From this
time forward records become more numerous, and we are able
to trace the stages of development with greater accuracy.
Assyria once more wakened to her possibilities, while Baby-
lonia continued in her helpless, prostrate condition. Nothing
of note is chronicled until Asshur-natsirpal III. became king- in
885 B. c. He promptly marched against the earlier conquered
tribes on the north who no longer paid their tribute. He
slaughtered a goodly number at the start, and this report spread
like wildfire among the tribes, who hastened to send gifts.
For some years he continued to bring countries under tribute,
quelling revolts with such severity as only an Assyrian could
have directed. One inscription is sufficient to let us under-
stand his customary procedure:
" I drew near to the city of Tela. The city was very
strong; three walls surrounded it. The inhabitants trusted
to their strong walls and numerous soldiers ; they did not come
down or embrace my feet. With battle and slaughter I as-
saulted and took the city. Three thousand warriors I slew
in battle. Their booty and possessions, cattle, sheep, I car-
ried away; many captives I burned with fire- Many of their
soldiers I took alive; of some I cut off hands and limbs; of
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 24I
Others the noses, ears, and arms; of many soldiers I put out
the eyes. I reared a column of the living and a column of
heads. I hung up on high their heads on trees in the vicinity
of their city. Their boys and girls I burned up in the flame.
I devastated the city, dug it up, in the fire burned it; I anni-
hilated it."'
Babylonia and nations on the east united against the re-
lentless conqueror, but in vain. They were defeated and some
of their cities laid waste.
Having carried on campaigns in this fashion for some time,
Asshur-natsirpal found himself at the head of a large army,
well disciplined, invincible, inured to slaughter and devasta-
tion— a menace to the state if kept idle, and if disbanded, re-
moving at a stroke the fear which prompted the payment of
tribute.
Something should perhaps be said of tribute, which we
find kings demanding of all subjected people. The habit of
compelling the payment of tribute was tolerated only in an
age when might made right. None of the earliest nations
gave anything in exchange for tribute exacted. No effort
was made to defend tributary tribes from the attacks of
other tribes. Tribute was merely the price paid by a people
for the privilege of benig in other respects left alone. A king
who dreamed of a wide reaching empire, tried to bring as many
nations as possible under his tribute. The payment of this
tribute was the formal acknowledgment of the emperor's
over-lordship. Until the age of Persian dominance, no mon-
arch was able to do much more than compel the annual pay-
ment in joining alien territories to his own. Assyria attempted
on a smaller scale what Persia effected, but little more than the
conception of a great empire was contributed by Assyria; it
was given reality by Persian conquerors.
Asshur-natsirpal realized the only course open to him was
that of conquest, and to that he now turned. Setting out
for the west, his march was a continual triumph. His reputa-
tion was so well established, and the strength of his army so
well understood that tribes on either side sent gifts as soon as
he drew near.
Reaching the EupHrates, he was unable to make any ade-
* Quoted in Goodspeed, p. 197.
242 THE WORLD S PROGRESS.
quate provision for the transportation of his troops. The
Assyrians were an inland people and knew nothing of mari-
time affairs. Each soldier was expected to get himself across
the stream, partly swimming, partly buoyed up by inflated
skins of animals.
Drawing near the Mediterranean Sea, he found that com-
merce occupied the people in that region to the exclusion of
war. Indeed, they would pay heavily to avoid war, which
seriously interfered with their trade. The king of the Hittites
— once a nation of importance but at this time retaining little of
its former strength — stated his position very frankly. His
policy was direct and simple. He was willing to pay down the
sum of twenty talents of silver, one hundred talents of copper,
two hundred and fifty talents of iron, along with chains and
beads of gold and much other treasure, if he were simply let
alone. . . . National pride counted for nothing. The
primary desire was to get the Assyrians out of the country as
soon as possible; and well might they pay a heavy tribute to
gain such a boon as that."'
It was apparent that there would be no particular oppor-
tunity for military skill against people of such convictions as
these. The Assyrian army moved on and at length drew near
the green slopes of the Lebanon, in sight of the Mediterranean
waters, dotted over by Phoenician ships, busily plying their
trade. While no city was besieged, no blood shed, the effect
was marked upon the entire region. All acknowledged Asshur-
natsirpal as conqueror. In some cases, Assyrian officials were
stationed to keep the home government in touch with these
distant parts; in other places, Assyrian colonists were induced
to settle, far from their native homes. Cities were walled by
the labor of Assyrian soldiers, and were temporarily protected
by Assyrian fortifications. While such demonstrations had a
lasting effect on the western states, the Assyrian king, on his
part, was deeply impressed by one thing, and this omened ill
for their future ; the people of this region cared more to pro-
tect their commerce than their country. They valued the pro-
tection of their wares above the honor and independence of
their respective states. We shall see that this one fact as
understood by the Assyrian king developed a definite western
policy.
» Rogers : Hist, of Baby, and Assy., Vol. II, 64.
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 243
Unable to supply military action for his troops, the king set
them to cutting down trees — cedar, cypress, and juniper.
These were taken to Assyria. The army returned home with-
out approaching Damascus, where opposition was certain to be
strong. Too much glory had been won to have it overshadowed
by any chance issue.
While the western conquest had been in progress, officers
at home had been carrying out the king's plans by rebuilding
Calah, and constructing a large canal. The king now returned
to personally supervise the construction of a royal palace.
" A palace for my royal dwelling-place, for the glorious
seat of my royalty, I founded forever and splendidly planned it.
I surrounded it with a cornice of copper. Sculptures of the
creatures of land and sea carved in alabaster, I made and
placed them at the doors. Lofty doorposts of . . . wood
I made, and sheathed them with copper and set them up in
the gates. Thrones of costly woods, dishes of ivory con-
taining silver, gold, lead, copper, and iron, the spoil of my
hand, taken from conquered lands I deposited therein."
In 860 B. c. Asshur-natsirpal died, leaving the future to
regard him as the most ferocious king in all Assyrian history;
yet he had accomplished more for his country than any of his
predecessors, and left it more united and in a more prosperous
condition. His son, Shalmaneser II., like the father, found him-
self obliged to keep an army active, collecting tributes and mak-
ing fresh conquests. He repeated the westward march, and
met an alliance formed against him at Damascus. To that city's
forces were joined those of Israel and of Phoenicia. While
their armies were defeated, no tribute was exacted, and this
fact in itself shows that the victory was not complete.
This first coalition formed against Assyria, made up of
Mediterranean peoples, is important. Such a union might have
effectually stayed the great military power of the age had not
jealousies among the states themselves hindered permanent
union. By 846 b. c. the alliance had been broken, and Jehu of
Israel sent gifts to the Assyrian ruler. This furnished him his
first hold on the independence of the Hebrews.
The next hundred years saw a union of Babylonia and
Assyria, and an attempt, on the part of one king at least, to
blot out all differences between the two peoples by showing
244
THE world's progress.
among other things that their rehgions were the same. To
give weight to the claim, he constructed temples in Nineveh,
after the model of those of Babylon.
In the following chapter we shall note the height of As-
syrian dominance and the proudest years of her history.
PL0CK5 AND CAPTIVE WOMEN CARRIED AWAY.
STORY OF BABYI^ONIA AND ASSYRIA. 245
CHAPTER VII.
Assyria — A Powerfui. Empire.
A dynasty of weak kings followed and seemed to be lead-
ing Assyria on to ruin, but in 746 B. c. the people rose up in
rebellion, driving them out and crowning a ruler selected by
themselves. It is supposed that the one they chose had already
proven his worth and capacity either at the head of a large
division of the army, or possibly in the management of some
Assyrian province. In any event, he was firmly established
at once and spent no time trying to inspire his subjects with
awe. His own name has not been recorded but he took the
crown name of Tiglath-Pileser III., seeking to emulate him
who had borne it first. He is the Pul of the Old Testament.
Babylonia demanded first attention. The Armenians had
established themselves in the southern part of the kingdom
and threatened to crush out the old life and culture by their
rapidly increasing numbers.
Tiglath-Pileser III. was hailed by the native Babylonians
as a deliverer. Forcing the usurpers back, he divided the
former kingdom into four provinces, placing Assyrian gov-
ernors over each. He also brought many captives into these
provinces to make their homes, hoping in this way to weaken
the national spirit which tried every little while to gain back
old-time freedom for the state.
The Medes on the east required some curbing, but their
independence was not destroyed. These matters attended to,
Tiglath-Pileser III, was free to give attention to the west.
The city of Arpad stood in the way of Assyrian progress
and since it refused tribute, it was besieged. The plucky town
held out for two long years, but when finally taken, was laid
waste with great slaughter. All neighboring tribes hastened
to send tribute, and were incorporated into the Assyrian
empire.
Heretofore we have seen people brought under tribute and
some faint efforts made to hold them. Now we have reached
the imperial period of Assyrian development when the gov-
246 THE world's progress.
emment, established at home, sought to increase its actual
possessions abroad, and to bind them to the original kingdom
with strong ties.
An alliance had been made among the sea-coast states, with
Judah at the head. This had been formed, of course, to stay
the western tide of Assyrian power. Notwithstanding, the
king of Samaria yielded the moment the Assyrian army drew
near, paying the tribute with no display of force. Judah alone
seems to have remained unyielding and undisturbed. Thirty
thousand captives were brought into these districts to find new
homes, while many of the natives were deported to make room
for them.
Several methods were employed by Assyria to make con-
quests lasting. If a tribe or city acknowledged the Assyrian
king as conqueror, no recourse was made to arms; an annual
tribute was usually imposed and an Assyrian governor placed
in the territory to hold revolts in check and to generally repre-
sent the empire, of which the province was now a part. The
native king was frequently allowed to rule over the people,
even though his main duty in some instances seems to have
been to raise the required tribute. If, on the other hand, a
tribe or city resisted, a war or siege followed. One battle
might reduce a tribe to submission; in the case of a city, all
supplies were shut off, and eventually the inhabitants would be
starved into surrender, whereupon, the city was often made
" land for the plough " by the exasperated king, and the people
subjected to all sorts of cruel punishments.
When a kingdom was conquered, it was thought desirable
to destroy its old patriotism by removing all chances for its
development. With that end in view, some of its citizens
would be sent out of the country to seek homes in other lands,
while those from distant regions would be brought in to take
their places. Naturally the newcomers knew nothing of the
traditions of their newly found country and cared not at all
to fight for them. In this way, nations ceased to retain their
venerated customs, but as the kings often record : " I made
them all to speak one language " — and that Assyrian. One
far-reaching effect of this policy was that when a revolt did
break out in some district, it no longer spread like wildfire in
all directions, but the governor of the province was himself
STORY OF BABYI^ONIA AND ASSYRIA. 247
able to put down any uprising, and the colonists recently
imported, caring nothing for the older inhabitants, could be
depended upon to help him.
Tiglath-Pileser III. turned now to Gaza, whose king fled
to Eg}'pt there to get aid in behalf of his state. Deserted, the
city soon surrendered and the Assyrian king, having sent the
old gods home to Assyria, installed Assyrian gods in the tem-
ples. Thence he marched to Palestine.
He who had held out against Assyria before was dead and
a weak king now ruled in Judah. Had the kings of Samaria
and Damascus formed an alliance with Judah, the power of
Assyria might yet have been broken ; instead they united their
forces to invade Judah and appropriate the territory of the
weak king for themselves. Isaiah, the great statesman of the
Hebrews, counselled the ruler in vain. To protect himself
against his aggressive neighbors he appealed to Assyria for
help. This drew Tiglath-Pileser III. to Samaria and Damascus,
while Judah, sending gifts, was not at this time molested. The
Samarians themselves rose up against their king. Having
killed him, they asked the Assyrian ruler to allow Hoshea to
rule over them as an Assyrian vassal. This sifted the opposi-
tion down to Damascus, which city prepared for a siege. Some
five hundred outlying towns were laid waste and their in-
habitants sent into other districts. Not all the army being
constantly required to guard the besieged town, part of the
troops marched into Arabia, demanding tribute and receiving
it. In 732 B. c. Damascus fell and became an Assyrian province.
By this time. Babylonia was in a state of turmoil. Under
Assyrian government the people had at first been free to de-
velop their arts of peace, and literature had flourished. Then
the Chaldeans to the south, established originally in the region
around the gulf, known once as Chaldea — tried again to rule
the land. In 726 B.C. Tiglath-Pileser III. marched into Baby-
lonia, where, taking the hands of the god Marduk, he was
crowned king of Babylonia. According to the ancient custom,
he who wore this crown must return each year and celebrate
this same ceremony. Two years later Tiglath-Pileser having
again performed the rites, died before the year elapsed.
During the short reign which followed interest again re-
verted to the west. Hoshea refused to pay tribute in 725 B.C.,
248 rni, world's progre;ss.
looking to Eg)'pt for help. He was taken captive and Samaria
made ready for a siege. Strange to say, the town held out
for three years and the king of Assyria died before it was
taken. Sargon II. at once succeeded. (722-705 b. c.) He
again was not of royal blood and he too chose a popular crown
name. .
Samaria soon fell, and quite possibly neither the besieging
army or the stricken town knew of any change in rulers.
Twenty-seven thousand two hundred and ninety of the in-
habitants of Samaria — the flower of the land, — were deported
to the Median mountains, while colonists were brought in from
Babylonia and other provinces to take their places. This loss
it was impossible to retrieve. Assyrian governors were set
over the land, now merely an Assyrian province.
In 721 B. c. attention focused once more in Babylonia,
where the Chaldeans had again usurped the crown. In the
battle Sargon waged, the result was so indecisive that neither
side gained much. The usurpers were simply checked.
Suddenly an alliance was formed in the west, made up of
stricken Samaria, Damascus and Gaza. Sargon marched
rapidly west before their armies were ready, and defeated them
separately and carried "the ten tribes into captivity." Now
again more strangers were brought in, and more citizens sent
out. It is little wonder, after all these mixtures of peoples, that in
later years the Jews regarded the Samarians as not of their kin,
but an inferior race, so that in the time of Christ one could say :
"How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a
woman of Samaria? For the Jews have no dealings with the
Samaritans 1"
It was during this campaign that the Hittite king was
taken prisoner and his kindgom, once so powerful, was merged
into the Assyrian Empire.
Not long after, Hezekiah, king of Judah, attempted to stir
up an opposition to the Assyrian tribute payment. Isaiah,
the far-seeing statesman, again counselled against it, — vainly
to be sure, yet constantly, for this was an unfavorable mo-
ment. As might have been foreseen, the coalition was short-
lived.
Sargon's work in time of peace was extensive. He built
a palace, like his predecessors, but outdoing them, he con-
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 249
structed a royal city for its location. This was a custom new
in Assyria, but we have seen that it was usual in Egypt, during
the Middle and New Empires. Choosing a spot not far from
Nineveh, at the base of a mountain, he had a rectangular area
laid out, its corners pointing to the four cardinal points. First
temples were built to the gods, whose favor he sought in every
possible way, even going to the length of paying for the site
of the city, and compensating those who asked no money.
After the temples, the palace itself arose — built of ivory, palm-
wood, cedar, cypress, having gates of wood overlaid with
bronze. The eight gates of the city were named for the eight
leading divinities, the walls for Asshur, and the ramparts for
Niveb. An invocation was inscribed to the gods : " May
Asshur bless this city, and this palace! May he invest these
constructions with an eternal brightness! May he grant that
they shall be inhabited until the remotest days! May the
sculptured bull, the guarding spirit, stand forever before his
face ! May he keep watch here night and day, and may his feet
never move from this threshold !" The palace is said to have
contained " twenty-four bulls in relief and two miles of
sculptured slabs." Since the work was only begun in 712 b. c,
and he came to reside within in 707 b. c, he
was apparently able to command a large army of workmen.
This was the palace whose ruins Botta unearthed in 1846,
and each part remaining appeared to be as perfect as work-
manship could make it.
The new city was peopled in a unique way. " People from
the four quarters of the world, of foreign speech, of manifold
tongues, who had dwelt in mountains and valleys, . . .
whom I, in the name of Asshur my lord, by the might of my
arms had carried into captivity, I commanded to speak one
language and settled them therein. Sons of Asshur of wise
insight in all things, I placed over them, to watch over them;
learned men and scribes to teach them the fear of God and the
King."
It is supposed that Sargon II. was murdered in 705 b. c.
and his son Sennacherib succeeded to the throne. He had
observed his father's difhculties.in keeping order in Babylonia,
and had concluded before ever he came to the throne that to
indulge the pride of Babylon by longer conforming to her
250 THE world's progress.
venerated custom of crowning her king each year — thus requir-
ing his annual appearance, — was mere folly. He believed
that Babylonia, whatever her history, was now an Assyrian
province, and hence the king of Assyria was her king. So he
himself did not go at all to Babylon, but was merely crowned
in Nineveh as King of Assyria. Now the Babylonians, far
from submitting to this train of logic, in course of a brief
time, crowned their own king. Thereupon the Chaldeans, ever
watchful for an opportunity to re-establish their power, set up
a ruler in the same country, farther south. In 702 b. c,
because of this confusion, Sennacherib marched to Babylon,
laid waste many Chaldean cities, deported 200,000 people and
crowned as king a young nobleman, Babylonian by birth but
educated at the Assyrian court. Having so vigorously asserted
his strength, he was soon needed in the west.
The situation there was critical. Hezekiah, king of Judah,
had successfully conducted a war against the Philistines, and
was therefore regarded by his subjects as a great and mighty
warrior. There was a strong faction in the kingdom who op-
posed the annual payment of tribute to Assyria and who be-
lieved that against them also Hezekiah might assert 4iimself
and free them from this hated tribute service. Isaiah, under-
standing the vast difference in the resources of the two coun-
tries, counselled against a war, but it remained for future
generations to discern the clear, far sighted re3<^oning of this
statesman, and the king, even had he chosen to heed good
counsel, was shortly plunged into a war which was the popular
demand of his people. Jerusalem prepared for a siege, and
water was brought into the city from some distance by an
aqueduct. Egypt promised aid, for the Ethiopian king who
ruled that country and the native princes who were struggling
to regain the throne, all felt that an opportunity opened in this
way to win glory in Asia which should serve as a lever to
them at home. Judah had yet to learn how fallen was this
ancient state and how incapable of giving material assistance.
The rebellion spread, for freedom was dear to nations in
those days when submission meant at least heavy tributes, and
often deportation and a dismantled country. In the city of
Ekron the people, stirred by a hope of independence, seized
the Assyrian governor and led him captive to Hezekiah. As
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 25I
usual, the Assyrian king made forced marches and appeared
before he was expected and before the armies were massed,
so he had the less difficult task of defeating each nation sep-
arately. Tyre, one of the rebel cities, was first attacked. It
was not possible to materially injure her, since her defenses
on the sea were strong; Sidon surrendered and an Assyrian
ruler was set over the city ; now many of the allies were con-
sumed with fear and dropped out of the coalition, sending
tribute with all haste. In Ekron those who had led the rebel-
lion were killed or deported. As had long been the case, the
Assyrian king was meeting with brief resistance. Judah held
out, however. Hezekiah watched for re-enforcements from
Egypt, but before they drew near, Sennacherib opened battle,
winning with heavy losses. Hezekiah withdrew his forces into
Jerusalem to undergo a siege, while the Assyrian army turned
to meet Eg}^ptian allies and captured the leaders. Forty-six
cities around Jerusalem were taken, and when it seemed futile
to longer hold out, Hezekiah sent an embassy to Sennacherib
to ask for terms of peace. A sum of money approaching
$1,000,000 in our money, was demanded, and although it was
raised with difficulty in Judah, it was paid over ta the con-
queror. However, Hezekiah did not come out to meet Sen-
nacherib and acknowledge him as overlord, and the Assyrian
king, feeling that his victory was yet indecisive, dispatched his
most trusted generals to demand the surrender of Jerusalem.
Meanwhile he marched with the great mass of Assyrian forces
to intercept more Eg\'ptian armies now approaching. Encamp-
ing at Pelusium, a place noted for its plagues before that day
and since, the army was stricken in the night. In a few
days only a remnant of the great force remained and a home-
ward march was begun at once.
The Hebrews, according to their custom, interpreted this
issue to signify direct intervention of Providence in their be-
half. Instead of being led captives of Assyrian provinces and
having their land devastated, they gained fame and glory
by the expedition. The Egyptians also claimed a victory —
all because of the pestilence.
The two accounts of the campaign, the Hebrew version
of the story as chronicled in the Old Testament, and the As-
syrian version, as translated from their tablets, are both so
252 THE world's progress.
interesting that we quote them at length. Such differences
as they show are easily explained in view of the standpoints of
each writer.
Returning home, Babylonia was found to be in a state of
insubordination, having once more asserted her independence.
Sennacherib now placed his own son on the throne, but still
difficulties multiplied. At last the Babylonians united with the
Chaldeans, their long-sworn enemies, against Assyria. At
this juncture, in 689 b. c, Sennacherib determined to strike
at the root of the trouble. He marched into the land and set
fire to the city of Babylon, after plundering its temples and
palaces. Over the desolate site of the city he then turned a
canal, converting the region into a swamp.
It is almost staggering even at this remote time to think
of the pride and glory of Babylonian life, the splendor of its
palaces, the wonder of its temples, being thus wantonly de-
stroyed. Long periods of peace in the kingdom had given
opportunity for art and literature to develop, and there can be
no question that countless records of priceless worth were
destroyed by the deed of this fierce Assyrian. The culture of
Babylonia had indeed succumbed to the barbarism of Assyria.
The inhabitants — scholars, artists, artisans, were taken cap-
tives, and deported to various points of the empire.
The following reign saw all that was possible done to
atone for this reckless act, but far beyond what we can now
calculate, the loss was irreparable.
Hebrew Account oe the War with Assyria.
" Now in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah did Sen-
nacherib, king of Assyria, come up against all the fenced cities
of Judah, and took them. And Hezekiah, king of Judah, sent
to the king of Assyria to Lachish, saying, * I have offended ;
return from me: that which thou puttest on me will I bear.'
And the king of Assyria appointed unto Hezekiah, king of
Judah, three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of
gold.
" And Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found
in the house of the Lord, and in the treasures of the king's
house. At that time did Hezekiah cut off the gold from the
doors of the temple of the Lord, and from the pillars which
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 253
Hezekiah, king of Judah, had overlaid, and gave it to the king
of Assyria.
" And the king of Assyria sent Tartan and Rabsaris and
Rab-shakeh from Lachish to King Hezekiah with a great host
against Jerusalem. And they went up and came to Jerusalem.
And when they were come up they came and stood by the
conduit of the upper pool, which is in the highway of the
fuller's field. And when they had called to the king, there
came out to them Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, which was over
the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joan the son of
Asaph, the recorder.
" And Rab-shakeh said unto them : Speak ye now to Heze-
kiah, Thus saith the great king, the king of Assyria: What
confidence is this wherein thou trusteth? Thou sayest (but
they are vain words) I have counsel and strength for the war.
Now on whom dost thou trust, that thou rebellest against me ?
" Now, behold, thou trusteth upon the staff of this bruised
reed, even upon Egypt, on which if a man lean, it will go into
his hand, and pierce it : so is Pharaoh, king of 'Egypt, unto
all that trust on him.
" But if ye say unto me, We trust in the Lord our God :
is not that he, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah
hath taken away and hath said to Judah and Jerusalem, Ye
shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem?
"Now, therefore, I pray thee, give pledges to my lord
the king of Assyria, and I will deliver thee two thousand
horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them.
How then wilt thou turn away the face of one captain of the
least of my master's servants, and put thy trust on Egypt
for chariots and for horsemen? Am 1 now come up without
the Lord against this place to destroy it? The Lord said to me.
Go up against this land, and destroy it.
" Then said Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, and Shebna, and
Joan, unto Rab-shakeh, Speak, I pray thee, to thy servants in
the Syrian language ; for we understand it : and talk not with us
in the Jews' language in the ears of the people that are on
the wall. But Rab-shakeh said unto them, Hath my master
sent me to thy master, and to thee, to speak these words?
hath he not sent me to the men which sit on the wall? Then
Rab-shakeh stood and cried with a loud voice in the Jews'
1—18
254 THE world's progress.
language, and spake, saying, Hear the word of the great king,
the king of Assyria: Thus saith the king, Let not Hezekiah
deceive you : for he shall not be able to deliver you out of his
hand. Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, say-
ing, The Lord will surely deliver us, and this city shall not
be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria : Harken not
to Hezekiah: for thus saith the king of Assyria, Make an
agreement with me by a present, and come out to me, and then
eat ye every man of his own vine and every one of his own fig-
tree, and drink ye every one the waters of his cistern : Until
I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land
of corn and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of
oil, olive and of honey, that ye may live, and not die: and
harken not unto Hezekiah, when he persuadeth you, saying,
The Lord will deliver us. Hath any of the gods of the nations
delivered at all his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria ?
Where are the gods of Hamath, and of Arpad ? where are the
gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivah? have they delivered
Samaria out of mine hand ? Who are they among all the gods
of the countries, that have delivered their country out of mine
hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem out of mine
hand ? But the people held their peace, and answered him not
a word : for the king's commandment was, saying. Answer him
not. . . .
" And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord, and said, . . .
O Lord our God, I beseech thee save thou us out of his hand,
that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art
the Lord God, even thou only. . . . Therefore thus saith
the Lord concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come
into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it
with shield, nor cast a bank against it. By the way that he
came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this
city, saith the Lord. For I will defend this city, to save it,
for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.
" And it came to pass that night that the angel of the
Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an
hundred fourscore and five thousand : and when they arose
early in the morning, behold they were all dead corpses.
" So Sennacherib, king of Assyria, departed, and went and
returned and dwelt at Nineveh." — 11. Kings, 18 and 19.
srory of babyi^onia and assyria. 255
Concerning the Revolt of Judah: From an Assyrian
Tablet.
"But as for Hezekiah of Judah, who had not submitted
to my yoke, forty-six of his strong walled cities and the smaller
cities round about them, without number, by the battering of
rams, and the attack of war-engines, by making breaches by
cutting through, and the use of axes, I besieged and captured.
Two hundred thousand, one hundred and fifty people, small
and great, male and female, horses, mules, asses, camels,
cattle and sheep, without number, I brought forth from their
midst and reckoned as spoil. (Hezekiah) himself I shut up
like a caged bird in Jerusalem, his royal city. I threw up
fortifications against him, and whoever came out of the gates
of his city I punished. His cities, which I had plundered,
I cut off from his land and gave to Mitinti, King of Ashdod,
. . . and made his territory smaller. To the former
taxes, paid yearly, tribute, a present for my lordship, I added
and imposed on him. Hezekiah himself was overwhelmed by
the fear of the brilliancy of my lordship, and the Arabians
and faithful soldiers whom he had brought in to strengthen
Jerusalem, his royal city, deserted him. Thirty talents of gold,
eight hundred talents of silver, precious stones, . . .
couches of ivory, thrones of elephant skin and ivory,
ushu and urkarinu woods, of every kind, a heavy treasure, and
his daughters, his palace women, male and female singers, to
Nineveh, my lordship's city, I caused to be brought after me,
and he sent his ambassador to give tribute and to pay homage."
2S6 . THE world's progress.
CHAPTER VIII.
Last Years of Assyrian Greatness.
" And it came to pass, as Sennacherib was worshipping
in the house of Nishroch his god, that Adrammelech and
Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword : and they escaped
into the land of Armenia. And Esarhaddon his son reigned
in his stead." Thus did the Hebrew chronicle the death of
Sennacherib, and since Assyrian tablets recounting the dire
plot have long since been destroyed, we are thrown wholly upon
the fact as stated without explanation or detail.
Esarhaddon, who succeeded to the throne in 680 b. c, had
already acted as regent in Babylonia, and had there acquired
deep veneration and love for the Babylonian past, as well as for
its life and culture. He wished to win the favor of its people,
scattered though they were, and so in addition to being crowned
king of Assyria, he had himself proclaimed viceroy of Baby-
lonia, for this office would not require his annual presence in
celebration of the yearly rites. Thus had his grandfather done,
and Sennacherib only had ruthlessly thrust aside the national
prejudice. His father had laid Babylon waste, changing its
v^ery site into a swamp and scattering its proud people to the
four winds. Esarhaddon immediately planned to rebuild the
city and so far as possible, bring those departed back to their
old homes.
In an age given over to cruelty, devastations, selfish plots
and intrigues, it is surprising to find that this king allowed no
reflections to be cast upon his father's memory by condemning
his Babylonian policy. He had it set forth on tablets that the
gods had been displeased with the wrong doing of Babylon, and
that a king, merely their instrument, had in this way visited
divine wrath upon the heads of the people; while now, he,
Esarhaddon, again acting as agent for the gods, ready once
more to give their favor in hope of future obedience, wouM
MOW rebuild the ancient capital.
Slowly the city rose, more splendid and magnificent tha»
before. First the old temples were replaced, and around these
STORY OF BABYI.ONIA AND ASSYRIA. 257
the city came into being. Chaldeans had taken possession of
the land after the nation was disrupted. The new king now
forced them back, restoring property wherever possible to its
rightful owners.
Such being the situation at home, abroad the state o5
affairs was critical. Tyre had not submitted, nor Judah. Sidon
no longer paid tribute. Vast sums of money were needed to
carry on the gigantic building project, and these commercial
sea-port towns offered a rich reward to the conqueror.
Having heard that Esarhaddon was determined to make a
westward march, the sea-coast cities prepared to offer resist-
ance. Sidon was besieged and held out for nearly three years.
When at last it fell into the hands of the exasperated Assyrians,
it was utterly destroyed. Both king and soldiers were in-
furiated by the long delay and plundered until weary. The
walls of the town were broken down and cast into the sea;
the luxurious homes of the merchantmen were stripped of
their wealth and razed to the ground. The entire city was
blotted out of existence. Then the king set about erecting a
new town on its site, naming it for himself, and peopling it
with those taken captive in the nearby mountains while the
siege was carried on. Over all he placed an Assyrian governor,
and then set out for Nineveh.
Reaching his capital, he made a triumphal entry, laden
with spoils, captives and cattle. Some of the noblest citizens
of Sidon swelled his train. Gold, silver, precious stones, rare
woods, dress-stuffs, — these had fallen to his share after three
years of waiting.
The siege of Tyre had been begun about the same time
that Sidon was attacked, but Tyre was more favorably situated.
She could not be cut off from the sea and so could not be
starved into submission. Baal was king and he proposed to
hold out against the besiegers. The Assyrians walled up the
land side of the city and it was wholly cut off from its land
commerce, so in the long run, it would have to yield. After
a time, the siege was raised, but over-land commerce was no
longer possible.
Esarhaddon knew well that the frequent disturbances in
Syria which so annoyed him and had so troubled previous
reigns, were largely instigated by unceasing efforts of Egypt
258 THE world's progress.
to Stir the cities to rebellion, hoping in some unquiet times
that she might gain a foothold in western Asia and share in the
plunder of Syria, as pharaohs in early times had done. To
understand her position it is necessary to go back and see how
Egypt had fared after losing first place among the nations.
The Ethiopians, having taken on Egyptian culture and
customs centuries before, had gained political control as the
country weakened. Native princes gained power in the nomes
and tried incessantly to regain possession of the throne. As
usual there was so much personal jealousy among them that
concerted action was impossible. Egypt's name had stood for
power and great resources so many centuries, that even though
the state was weak — even tottering within, abroad it was still
judged by its former strength. Assyrian rulers had doubtless
known better its truer condition, for Sennacherib's generals
told those of Judah that looking thence for aid was like lean-
ing on a bruised reed.
Esarhaddon determined to strike at the root of Syrian dis-
sension, and in 673 b. c. led an army for the first time in
Assyrian history against Egypt. An army met his own outside
the borders and the result was indecisive. The Assyrians did
not enter the land at all. Three years later they defeated an
Egyptian army sent to meet them, crossed the border now
unhindered, and marched rapidly to Memphis. The city,
wholly unprepared for such unexpected attack, fell at once
into their hands. It was plundered generally and laid waste.
Unquestionably much of great historic value was wantonly
destroyed by soldiers who were allowed to pillage at will.
Statues of gods were removed to Nineveh, together with great
booty — and this was the work of a man who deplored the loss
of Babylon, and had undertaken to rebuild a capital not yet
known when Memphis stood the wonder of the world !
The Assyrians never outgrew their ferocity, their savage
thirst for ravage and murder, and their culture in Assyria's
most enlightened days was but a veneer encasing old tenden-
cies, characteristics and desires.
Over the twenty-one nomes, native princes were allowed
to rule, as vassals of an Assyrian governor, set over the
whole land. The king further undertook to change the names
of ancient towns, giving them Assyrian names, but this never
became a change at all — simply a useless attempt.
STORY O^ BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 259
The youngest world-power had now conquered the oldest.
Surely these were years wherein chart-makers would have
had a sorry time trying to indicate a nation's possessions.
On its homeward march the Assyrian army made a raid
into Arabia, but desert marches told quickly on the soldiers,
and no lasting results came of it.
At this point Assyrian possessions — even the original king-
dom itself — were threatened alarmingly by a migration start-
ing from the southern portion of present Russia. Thither
had come the Medes in an early day, and now thousands upon
thousands came pouring eastward in search of new and less
crowded homes. It was hopeless to stay such an onset of
troops — it would wear out many an army. Places vacated
today would be filled shortly by those pressing in the rear.
Besides, these people had no plan of conquest or occupation of
the land. They simply spread out like so many hungry cattle,
seeking food where it might be found. All that could be done
was to turn aside the main stream of progress. These new
comers settled down in Syria, reaching east to the land of
the Medes and far beyond it. In spite of watchful care, many
fertile lands were lost to Assyria.
In 668 a second Egyptian campaign was planned by the
king, but before starting out, he had his son, Asshur-banipal,
recognized as regent of Babylonia. This was to cause much
trouble in the future, because it once more divided the now
united country, and made an opportunity for old jealousies
to creep in again. On the march, Esarhaddon died, leaving
the future to regard him as noblest among Assyrian kings —
the most just and fair-minded of his race.
Asshur-banipal who succeeded to the throne in 668 B. C,
was naturally fond of learning and was a prodigious book-
collector. By using that term for Assyrian days we mean
of course a collector of clay tablets whereon were inscribed
literary productions.
The Eg}'ptian campaign had already opened, for it was
plain that the conquests of two years before were practically
lost. Sea-coast towns in Egypt submitted at once. Little
opposition was encountered in the Land of the Pyramids, and
Assyrian government was soon re-instated. The suspicion
of the generals was awakened by the simplicity of their task
26o thS world's progress.
and withdrawing their army, they loitered not far away. No
sooner had they left than the Assyrian government, tolerated
in the presence of the army, was thrown off and old forms
instituted. Now it was the Egyptian's turn to be surprised
when the army, supposed to be far on its homeward march,
reappeared in the land. The revolt was quickly put down,
and the leaders killed with as great cruelty as ever blackened
Assyrian pages.
In 660 B. c. Egypt declared her independence and this was
the first great loss of the Assyrian empire, soon to be followed
by many more.
Probably before this Tyre had been forced to yield, and
the king had sent his son and daughter to the Assyrian court
as an indication of submission.
A raid was made into Media, some of its cities being taken
and their inhabitants deported. For such experiences the
Medes grew to hate the Assyrians with increasing fervor.
Asshur-banipal was finding some difficulty in holding together
the empire of his fathers, and when revolts occurred, they
were put down with greatest severity.
Babylonia had maintained peace for fifteen years, but the
people clung to the traditions of their early history, and harked
back to a time when Babylon was the greatest city of the
world. Now, except for freedom from tribute, they ranked
as any other Assyrian province. Encouraged by the feelings
of those under him, the prince-regent conceived the notion of
stirring up all the provinces to revolt at the same time, hoping
that Babylonian independence might be gained in time of
confusion. He was urged on to this course, which was mis-
guided and ill timed, with little chance for success. Its only hope
lay in keeping secret the plot so far as the Assyrian king was
concerned. There were, however, many who would gladly try
to benefit themselves by unearthing any plan for revolt. There
might also be governors of provinces sufficiently far-sighted to
have nothing to do with any treasonable plot, and these could
not be expected to guard such a secret.
At last the Chaldeans on the south, Palestine, some pro-
vinces of Syria and some Arabian tribes, promised help.
The Babylonians were destined to learn how different was
that from actually giving it. To allay any suspicions Asshur-
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 36l
banipal might have, an embassy of Babylonian nobles visited
his court to give him assurance of his brother's loyalty. When
the news came that the Babylonians had seized Ur and Uruk,
the Assyrian king was much astonished. He spent some little
time in complaint of his faithless brother; an inscription ran:
"At that time Shamash-shum-ukin, the faithless brother,
to whom I had done good, and whom I had established as
king of Babylon, and for whom I had made every possible
kind of royal decoration, and had given him, and had gathered
together soldiers, horses, and chariots, and had intrusted them
to him, and had given him cities, fields, and woods, and the
men dwelling in them, even more than my father had com-
manded— even he forgot that favor I had shown him, and
he planned evil. Outwardly with his lips he spoke friendly
things, while inwardly his heart plotted rebellion."
Asshur-banipal waited for a favorable omen before start-
ing out to quell the rebellion, and it came at last in this way :
" In those days a seer slept in the beginning of the night and
dreamed a dream, thus : * On the face of the Moon it is
written : Whoever deviseth evil against Asshur-banipal, king
of Asshur, makes enmity, a violent death I appoint for them.
With the edge of the sword, the burning of fire, famine, and the
judgment of the Pest-god, I will destroy their lives.* This I
heard and trusted to the will of Sin, my lord. I gathered my
army ; against Shamash-Shum-ukin I directed the march."
Help came to the revolting Babylonians from few of the
promised allies. Arabia, Chaldea, and the land of the Ela-
mites sent troops, but in the battle waged they suffered fear-
ful defeat. Babylon underwent a severe siege and at last
the king committed suicide. Then the gates of the city were
thrown open and great was the slaughter. Asshur-banipal
had himself proclaimed king, and pushed on to punish the
allies for their part in the rebellion. Much of the land of
the Elamites was laid waste, and left smoking by this man
who patronized learning. The weakening of these people
left Assyria open to attacks later from the Medes.
The later years of Asshur-banipal's reign were filled with
peaceful interests. He rebuilt the great palace of his father,
and in one of its upper chambers was amassed the great
2t»2 THE WORLD^S PROGRESS.
number of tablets, referred to as the library of Nineveh. In 626
B. c. the king died.
Our knowledge of the reigns immediately following is
scanty. Babylonia asserted her independence and the Assyrian
king had a difficult task to hold the empire together.
Determined to recover the kingdom to the south, he marched
against its capital while its king was distant with his army.
Cut off from Babylon, the king appealed to the Medes for
aid. They cared not at all to help the Babylonian, but they
hated with undying hatred the very name of Assyria. Their
numbers had often been increased by refugees, driven from
their homes by Assyrian armies, and they themselves had
experienced defeat at the hands of Assyrian troops. The
possibility of crippling the great power of Asia stimulated
them to aid the Babylonians. They soon repulsed the Assyrian
army near Babylon and drove it north. Still they pursued the
fleeing army and forced the king and his army to retire into
Nineveh. At last the fate the Assyrians had so often meted
out to others was measured out to them. Great wealth was
stored in Nineveh, and this the besieging army wished for
themselves. The walls were strong and were long defended,
but an assault finally carried all before it. Nineveh, built by
the wealth of spoils, beautified by plunder from the known
world, became the spoils of the Medes, who stripped the
temples and palaces and then set fire to the city.
Nineveh fell in 606 b. c. The Assyrians were scattered
to the four winds and grass grew over the once smoking
ruins. Two hundred years later, when Xenophon led his
army over this spot on his return to Greece, none knew that
they passed over the site of the once great world-city.
The civilization developed by the Babylonians had been
passed on to the Assyrians. It was now left a heritage for
the Chaldeans, to whom descended the legacies of both
countries, and in turn they dominated the valley of the
Euphrates. As for Assyrian greatness, so far-reaching and
wide, the Hebrew told the story in poetic language centuries
ago, and today none could set it forth more vividly.
" Behold, the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon with fair
branches, and with a shadowing shroud, and of an high
stature ; and his top was among the thick boughs. The waters
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 2^
made him great, the deep set him up on high, with her rivers
running round about his plants and sent out her little rivers
unto all the trees of the field. Therefore his height was
exalted above all the trees of the field, and his boughs were
multiplied, and his branches became long because of the multi-
tude of waters, when he shot forth.
" All the fowls of heaven made their nests in his boughs,
and under his branches did all the beasts of the field bring
forth their young, and under his shadow dwelt all great
nations. Thus was he fair in his greatness, in the length
of his branches; for his root was by the great waters. The
cedars in the garden of God could not hide him: the fir
trees were not like his boughs, and the chestnut trees were
not like his branches ; nor any tree in the garden of God was
like unto him in his beauty. . . . All the trees of Eden,
that were in the garden of God, envied him. . . .
" Strangers, the terrible of the nations, have cut him off,
and have left him : upon the mountains and in all the valleys
his branches are fallen, and his boughs are broken by all the
rivers of the land; and all the people of the earth are gone
down from his shadow, and have left him. Upon his ruin
shall all the fowls of the heaven remain, and all the beasts
of the field shall be upon his branches. To the end that none
of all the trees by the waters exalt themselves for their
height, neither shoot up their top among the thick boughs,
neither their trees shall stand up in their height, all that drink
water: for they are delivered unto death, to the nether parts
of the earth, in the midst of the children of men, with them
that go down to the pit." — Bsekiel 31.
264 THE world's PR0CRSS8.
CHAPTER IX.
The Chaldean Empire in Babylonia.
We have found frequent mention of the Chaldeans, and
it is now necessary to understand just what was their position
at the fall of Nineveh.
The Chaldeans of this period were descendants of the Sem-
itic invaders, who settled in the Sea-lands, including parts of
eastern Arabia as well as lands in Babylonia washed by
the Persian Gulf. Originally a pastoral people, they had
taken to trade and though long in Babylonia, they had not
mingled greatly with others. They looked with envious eyes
upon the fertile valley of the Euphrates and coveted the
wealth of its cities. On this account they would willingly
follow any leader who might enable them to gain these lands
and riches for themselves. Because such a victory would
unquestionably give kingship over the people, many of their
princes made efforts to gain political control, causing no end
of trouble to the Babylonian or Assyrian officials in charge
of maintaining the peace. This makes clear the motive
prompting the numerous attempts to usurp the government,
already noted.
The old Babylonians had received so many infusions of
blood from the Elamites, Kassites, and colonists settled in
their territory by different Assyrian rulers, that the pure
Babylonian stock no longer existed to any extent, although
Babylonian ideas, culture and characteristics had been absorbed
by those who came to dwell in the land. The empire which
now grew up in the valley was essentially Chaldean. It has
been called the New Empire of Babylonia.
Upon the death of Asshur-banipal, he who had previously
been king-regent asserted himself as king of Babylonia, and
so Nabopolassar has sometimes been called the founder of
the New Chaldean Empire, although in truth he was merely
one who declared Babylonian independence at a time when
none were strong enough to dispute the claim. The empire,
established in this way, followed Babylonian precedence in
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 265
all matters. The kings concerned themselves with war only
when compelled to do so, their works being works of peace —
the building of temples, the construction of canals.
One foreign war of some importance occurred during the
first reign — the reign of Nabopolassar. Necho II., pharaoh
of Eg>'pt, desired to regain those Asiatic possessions which
Thothmes III. and later warrior kings had won for the Nile
kingdom. To this end he led an army north, demanding the
submission of the sea-coast towns. Gaza was quickly won,
and this city was key to the east. Tyre and Sidon would
pay tribute to any nation rather than have their commerce
again destroyed by war. Judah alone resisted. Too long
had this little country held out against a various enemy to
yield tribute upon demand. Josiah was now Judah's king.
He led an army against the Egyptian forces but was repulsed
and he himself killed. In confusion the Hebrew army fled
to Jerusalem where a younger brother of Josiah was pro-
claimed king. The Egyptian pharaoh now collected a heavy
fine from the people of Judah and he named a king for them
in place of the one just popularly crowned.
The old Assyrian empire, so long the fear of all nations,
was now under control of three distinct peoples: the Chal-
deans held the Euphrates valley, the Medes held the north,
and Egypt had appropriated western Syria. Now the pharaoh
determined to further extend his empire. He would reach
the very banks of the Euphrates. This plan threatened the
Chaldean state, and Nabopolassar being too old to undertake
active service in the field, sent his son Nebuchadnezzar to
meet the Egyptian force. This was soon put to flight. The
Babylonian prince pursued and had not word come of the
death of the king, his father, the Babylonian army would
have been able to march victorious into Egypt. It was, how-
ever, more important to hold the kingdom at home than to
pursue fleeing troops abroad, so the prince went home to be
crowned Nebuchadnezzar II., king of Babylonian, and to enjoy
one of the longest reigns in Babylonian history. The city
of Babylon became his pride, and the erection of temples and
palac€s attracted him more than conquests.
Notwithstanding, the kingdom of Judah compelled atten-
tion by refusing after three years' peace to longer pay tribute.
266 THE world's progress.
The war-party in this little state seems often to have been
strong and always to have been eager for independence, while
its adherents were generally so blinded by their own enthus-
iasm that they were unable to estimate correctly their prob-
able chance for success. Isaiah had long been dead. Jere-
miah held his place of influence and he labored diligently to
show his people the folly of their intent. He succeeded only
in drawing censure upon himself and in 597 B. c, Nebuch-
adnezzar sent an army to besiege Jerusalem. The Judean king
Jehoiakim, suddenly died, and a youth about eighteen years
of age ascended the throne. He thought best to surrender,
whereupon he, his mother and court, were taken as captives
to Babylon, together with 7,000 soldiers and 1,000 artisans.
The remainder of the inhabitants were left to pay tribute
and remain subservient to Babylonian rule.
In Egypt, Hophra had come to the throne. Like his
predecessor, he longed for Syrian possessions, and now tried
to stir up the sea-coast states to rebellion. No folly could
have been plainer — for Judah it meant destruction itself to
set its strength against the forces of Babylonia. Jeremiah
thundered his bitterest reproaches. He sought vainly to bring
his countrymen to their senses and save them from utter ruin.
But the spirit of rebellion was abroad, and many times it has
spread similarly through a land, drawing to its cause voices
seldom heard, and kindling a desire which cannot be put down
by cool argument and reason. So Jeremiah continued to
grow in disfavor, and was finally held a prisoner by those
he tried to aid.
It has been pointed out with much force that the stricken
nation of Judah had become the prey of neighboring tribes
and that an insufferable situation impelled it to war, but Baby-
lonia could alone protect it, and Babylonian protection was
not to be won by rebellion against its rule. Egypt was to
again prove the " bruised reed " which would fail utterly
when leaned upon.
From the Babylonian standpoint the situation was this:
here was a little state which for hundreds of years had been
the center of western dissensions. Its revolts had already
cost Babylonia and Assyria dear in fighting men and tire-
some sieges, and now it rntist l)e forever quelled if attention
STORY O? BABYU)NIA AND ASSYRIA. 267
was to be given to home affairs. Crippling its strength would
not avail, for that had been already tried. Trusting to the
vows of its kings was manifestly useless, since the king who
led the revolt had sworn by his mighty God to be faithful
to Babylon. That solemn pledge he had now broken. Noth-
ing short of laying waste the land and scattering the people
would apparently put an end to the trouble.
Moab, Ammon, Tyre and Sidon were now in league with
Judah and Eg}'ptian aid was promised. The war party in
Jerusalem went about shouting that Jehovah was with them —
no matter, seemingly, what folly they undertook.
In 587 B. c. the Babylonian army besieged Jerusalem,
intending to starve the city into submission. The siege was
raised when Egyptian reinforcements drew near, long enough
to defeat them and send them home in confusion. Then it
went on again. In 586 b. c. the Babylonians broke through
the walls of Jerusalem and the city was destroyed. The king
who had broken faith was taken to Babylon and blinded, while
his sons were slain. Such punishments as these had not been
common with the old Babylonians, and they show that the
Chaldeans were not of the ancient temperament, — merciful
and kind. The best citizens of Jerusalem were taken captives,
while the poorer ones were left to cultivate the soil. The
great prophet Jeremiah was thought to be friendly to the
government of Babylon, and was given permission to go where
he would. He remained with the stricken band of Hebrews,
who soon after journeyed into Egypt.
Tyre, as an ally, was besieged but here the problem of
cutting the city off from outside communication again arose.
The siege lasted for thirteen years and in the end the city
paid tribute. In 567 b. c. Nebuchadnezzar's army invaded
Egypt, but it was merely a raid to terrorize the Egyptians
and put an end to Egyptian interference.
The king was now free to give his energy to internal
affairs, and his attention was chiefly centered in building and
beautifying Babylon. Notable among his undertakings were
the walls of the city — counted among the seven wonders of
the world. They were so well constructed that had they been
defended, the city could never have been taken save by
treachery inside the capital itself. In 562 b. c. Nebuchad-
nezzar died — the last great king of an ancient nation.
268 thB world's progress.
Of the following reign little is known, the king being
assassinated in the second year of his rule. Two other un-
eventful reigns followed, and then Nabonidus ascended the
throne. This man was a student — ^not a king. He did one
good service for future ages ; being devoted to rebuilding the
temples of the gods, he had his workmen excavate deep down
into the old foundations of the temple of the sun-god in Sippar,
which he says had not been seen for 3200 years, for the record-
tablet, always placed in the corner. Then he caused a new
tablet to be inserted, repeating the history of the temple and
enumerating his repairs. Modern excavators have been
greatly aided by these tablets of Nabonidus. While he was
thus absorbed, his country was fast plunging on to ruin. His
was an age when the mere existence of a nation depended
upon its aggressive policy. While the entire resources of the
country were being expended upon shrines sacred to the gods,
there was neither time nor money for the maintenance of an
army. Matters were allowed to take their own course for
awhile, and later the king's son, Belshar-usur, or Belshazzar,
was left to manage government concerns. For this reason,
the Hebrews recorded him as the last Babylonian king, while
in truth his father bore the kingly title.
Even when danger threatened the state to such an extent
that the scholar-king himself, poking around among his ancient
record-tablets, was finally forced to take notice of it, he gave
no thought to his kingdom or his subjects, but was simply
alarmed for the safety of his statue-deities. These he had
hurried into the capital from all parts of the land. So occu-
pied was he lest perchance a god or two might some way
escape him, that he had no time to prepare the city for attack,
and in the end Babylon, the pride of its age, came into the
hands of the conqueror without a blow!
The fact was that there were many within the kingdom
who would gladly welcome outside interference. The
Hebrews had settled down in their quarter and had become the
leading people of commerce and loaners of money. One
commercial firm alone — Egibi & Sons — filled a place for that age
not unlike the modern Rothschilds. These people, who may
have been of Jewish descent, hated the king who had destroyed
their city of Jerusalem and his descendants, and would willingly
STORY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 269
help any one who might rob Babylonion kings of their empire.
It has been surmised that for aid rendered they were allowed to
go back to their own country and rebuild Jerusalem on its
early site.
Not only were the Hebrews an element to be reckoned
with; the priests of the Babylonian gods had been repeatedly
offended by Nabonidus, and they too joined the opposition,
beyond doubt.
So great a city as Babylon had never before existed. No
city since has had so long a history, and yet, without a blow
struck in its defense, it passed into the possession of a people
just taking on the ways of civilized life. It was little wonder
that it fell shortly into ruins, soon to be grass-covered and
like Nineveh, forgotten!
Since 606 b. c. the Medes, conquerors of Assyria, had
been extending their territory. They were now a people of
strength, united under King Astyages.
In the land earlier called Elam, now Persia, a great con-
queror appeared — Cyrus the Great. He defeated the Medes
under Astyages, and so rapidly did his empire come into
being, that all civilized nations were roused to the danger
of a world-conqueror. In 546 b. c. Egypt, Babylonia, Lydia
and Sparta arrayed their forces against Cyrus, to check his
power, but his camels put their cavalry to flight, and he won
the decisive battle. Having annexed Asia Minor, he turned
to Babylon. As we have seen, the city of Babylon might
have held out indefinitely against attack, but when Belshazzar
led an army against a detachment of Persian troops, none
were left to defend the capital. The old tale of Herodotus
that Cyrus turned the Euphrates out of its course and entered
the city through its channel, is mere fiction. Such exertion
was unnecessary, for the city gates swung open wide to the
conqueror.
And thus we come to the end of the political history of
the Tigris-Euphrates states — a mere skeleton of framework,
which we can now fill out with some account of their social,
industrial and religious life.
1—19
ASSYRIAN PALACE AT NINEVEH.
CHAPTER X.
The Babylonian and Assyrian Compared.
To understand the Babylonian, we must take into con-
sideration both the nature of his country and the origin of
his race. Apart from these two important factors, the marked
differences between himself and his Assyrian brother would
not be clear.
We have found that Babylonia was an alluvial plain,
sloping- gently to the Persian Gulf, and made fertile by the
annual overflow and deposits of two rivers. As in Egypt,
so here remarkable yields of grain rewarded the sower if he
but supplied necessary moisture by maintaining a system of
well-regulated canals. Regarding the origin of the Baby-
lonians, we found that they sprang from a union of Semitics
with the earlier Turanian settlers of the country, receiving
later infusion of blood from the Kassites and Elamites. This
intermingling of races and peoples resulted in a nation whose
characteristics differed widely from the purer Semitic stock
that peopled Assyria.
" The Babylonian was a stout, thick-set man, somewhat
short, with straight nose, wide nostrils, and square face. The
Assyrian, on the other hand, was tall and muscular, his nose
was slightly hooked, his lips were full, his eyes dark and
piercing. His head and face showed an abundance of black
curly hair. . . .
" The Babylonian was essentially an irrigator and culti-
vator of the ground. The cuneiform texts are full of
references to the gardens of Babylonia, and the canals by which
they were watered. It was a land which brought forth
abundantly all that was entrusted to its bosom. . . . But
the fear of floods and the reclamation of the marsh lands
demanded constant care and labor, the result being that the
country population of Babylonia was, like the country popu-
lation of Egypt, an industrious peasantry, wholly devoted
270
SOCIAL LIFE IN MESOPOTAMIA. 27I
to agricultural work, and disinclined to war and military
operations. In the towns, where the Semitic element was
stronger, a considerable amount of trade and commerce was
carried on, and the cities on the sea-coast built ships and sent
their merchantmen to distant lands. . . .
" The character of the Assyrian was altogether different
from that of the Babylonian. He was a warrior, a trader,
and an administrator. The peaceful pursuits of the agricul-
tural population of Babylonia suited him but little. His two
passions were fighting and trading. But his wars, at all
events in the later days of the Assyrian Empire, were con-
ducted with a commercial object. ... It was to destroy
the trade of the Phoenician cities and to divert it into Assyrian
hands, that the Assyrian kings marched their armies to the
west; it was to secure the chief highways of commerce that
campaigns were made into the heart of Arabia and Assyrian
satraps were appointed in the cities of Syria. The Assyrian
was indeed irresistible as a soldier, but the motive that inspired
him was as much the interest of the trader as the desire for
conquest." *
Side by side with the Babylonian's farming concerns, grew
his love for study and his development of the peaceful arts.
An elementary education was general in Babylonia. As in-
dustry and commerce brought wealth and created thus a leisure
class, education and learning flourished in Babylonian cities.
Schools grew into prominence, and in the realm of astronomy
and certain of the sciences, some advance was made by which
the Greeks later profited. Quite the reverse was true in As-
syria. A feverish desire for commercial gain and for mili-
tary conquest prevented progress in the arts of peace. Learn-
ing was confined to a few — professional scribes supplied secre-
taries for the state and even wrote private letters for private
citizens. When the luxuries of the ancient world could be
won as tribute, the Assyrian scorned to produce them for him-
self. With blood unmixed with any peace-loving people, he
retained the characteristics of his earlier Arabian home. He
left the cultivation of the country to slaves and dwelt in cities,
when war and trade left him intermittent periods at home.
Both Babylonian and Assyrian were religious, but here
» Sayce : Social Life Among the Assyrians and Babylonians, 13.
272 THE world's PROGRESS.
again we find differences due to environment. The Baby-
lonian, inheriting the conjuring and magic of the earHer Chal-
dean, possessed a religion which held him in constant dread
of demons. The greatest aid and solace his religion afforded
was to assist him in driving away foes which assailed him
at every turn. The Assyrian on the contrary, showed the same
proud bearing in his religious concerns as in other aspects
of Hfe. Asshur was his mighty God, strong in battle and.
unequaled in courage. Firm in his conviction that Asshur
would give him victory, he went forth, like his Hebrew brother,
to overcome all others and destroy other gods which offended
the true God.
In origin and traditions alike, the Assyrian and the
Hebrew in early times present many similarities, and the
religion of the one is comparable at many points with that
of the other.
Houses.
It is supposed that in earliest times the dwellers in the
Euphrates valley built. their huts of reeds which grew in pro-
fusion along the river and the canals. These in time were
replaced by huts of sun-dried brick. We have already learned
that the low level plains of Babylonia afforded little or no
stone for building purposes. Oven-dried orick was the most
substantial building material known and this was so costly,
on account of the scarcity of fuel, that only the temples, kings'
palaces, and homes of the wealthy were made of it. The
great majority of houses then, were constructed of clay mud,
shaped in bricks and dried in the sun.
The more pretentious dwellings of nobles and kings were
placed on artificially constructed heights — ^huge piles of brick-
work, in order to raise them above the gnats and the malaria-
breeding fogs of the marshes. The huts of the poor were
located wherever opportunity offered. While these contained
but one or two rooms with small apertures in the clay walls
for windows, and had no floor save the ground, the houses
of the wealthy were frequently several stories high, the upper
floors being reached by outside stairways. The use of the arch
was known in Babylonia from 4000 B.C., a perfect keystone ex-
ample having been found at Nippur by the University of Penn-
sylvania expedition. Windows were furnished with tapestries
to exclude the storms and intense heat of noonday. Flat roofs
SOCIAL LIFB IN MESOPOTAMIA. 273
supplied a place for the women to perform many household
duties, or, if these were performed by slaves elsewhere, they sat
here to embroider their tapestries and to chat with their friends.
Here too, on hot nights, mattresses were thrown down for the
hours of sleep.
Wherever possible a garden surrounded the house. The
pride of the Babylonian, as of the Egyptian, was his care-
fully tended garden, whether it was a tiny plot of land or a
vast overhanging terrace like that of Babylon's queen.
Streets were narrow and exceedingly dirty, for into them
all refuse and rubbish from the houses accumulated. We
learn that sometimes the entire street would be filled up to
the very doors of the dwellings, and then, instead of clearing
them out, an upper story was added to the houses, new doors
provided, and the occupants started anew on a fresh elevation.
In homes of the wealthy the furniture was simple, and in
the huts of the poor it was scanty indeed. Chairs, stools,
and tables were in use; a mat often constituted the bed, al-
though pictures of most uncomfortable looking bedsteads have
been preserved, these being possessed only by the wealthy.
The Assyrians who went from Babylonia into their north-
ern land, took with them the habits and customs there
acquired. While stone was plentiful, they used it only for
foundations, or for the less important portion of their buildings,
continuing to make mud brick for the rest, as they had done
before. While hills and elevations were now available on
every hand, they still erected huge piles of brick or stone
and crowned these by their buildings. The Assyrian blood,
unmixed with other tribes or peoples, produced no ingenuity,
no inventive genius. The Assyrian remained an imitator —
never a creator. For this reason, we find close similarity
between the houses of the two countries.
Certain features which became inseparable with later archi-
tecture had their beginnings in Babylonia. In early times the
roof which covered the mud hut was supported by dried palm
stems; gradually a more substantial support was substituted,
and in this way the column had its origin and was adopted
and improved upon by the Greeks. Again, interior house
decoration may be traced back to these Babylonian houses
built of brick. In houses of the well-to-do, the unsightly
bricks were covered by a coatmg of stucco and upon this
274 The world's progress.
were painted various scenes and ornamentations. In Assyria,
slabs of soft lime-stone were used instead of the stucco, and
figures of horses and men, hunting scenes and battles, were
carved in bas-relief upon them. Indeed much of our knowl-
edge concerning the life of the people has been gained from
a study of the reliefs discovered in buried palaces.
Regarding the daily lives of those who dwelt within these
mud brick houses, we have less detailed information than
concerning the ancient Egyptian. Fewer scenes of ordinary
life were painted in the Tigris-Euphrates valleys, and what-
ever was entrusted to the clay stood far greater chance of
being destroyed than that committed to Egyptian stone.
FAMII.Y Life.
In considering the family life, the position accorded to
woman and the marriage laws and regulations are of first
importance.
In early times in Babylonia, a man received a dowry with
his wife. Polygamy was not infrequent but a strong check
was placed upon it by requiring the husband, in case of divorce,
to return the wife's dowry to her and allow her to return
home or maintain her own establishment. The income from
the dowry was enjoyed by both husband and wife, but it
remained the portion of the wife and could be willed accord-
ing to her pleasure. In case of a woman's second marriage,
her first dowry belonged to her, subject to the claim of her
children for one-half of its value.
In both Babylonia and Assyria married women enjoyed
many liberties. They might carry on business enterprises,
borrow or loan, manage their own property and dispose of
it at their will. They could seek justice in the courts, and
if they belonged to the middle classes, could come and go at
pleasure. The women of noble families were more carefully
guarded, and seldom appeared unattended in public.
Girls who were not provided with dowries might be pur-
chased and so become superior slaves of their husbands.
Children might be sold by their parents and brothers might
sell their sisters, but in these countries, slaves were not despised
as inferiors and inhumanly treated. They were often adopted
into families, and since those of noble birth were not in-
SOCIAL LIFE IN MESOPOTAMIA. 275
frequently taken captives in war, the slave might be superior
to the owner. However, this last was not so common in
Mesopotamia as it was later in Rome. The fact which alone
assured slaves of good treatment was that there was generally
no race difference to engender feeling betwen slave and master.
Indeed one case is cited in those days of quickly reversed
fortunes, where the slave in a few years became the master
and his former owner became his property!
Marriage was both a civil and a religious ceremony, and
the contract was signed in the presence of a priest. In a code
of Babylonian laws compiled about 2250 b. c, a law pro-
vided that " If a man has taken a wife and has not executed
a marriage-contract, that woman is not a wife." Another
provided for one who is helpless : " If a man has married a
wife and a disease has seized her, if he is determined to marry
a second wife, he shall marry her. He shall not divorce the
wife whom the disease has seized. In the home they made
together she shall dwell and he shall maintain her as long
as she lives." '^
Both sons and daughters could inherit property, and accord-
ing to Babylonian law, whosoever possessed property, could
will it, or dispose of it, with certain well established restric-
tions. In case there were no children to inherit an estate,
it was a common practice to adopt them. Thus families were
prevented from dying out.
Children were cared for, sent to school, taught trades or
professions, and probably a certain amount of family life was
enjoyed while they were growing up. The rights of each
member of the family were definitely recognized by law.
Home life as we today understand the phrase, was unknown
in antiquity.
We can contrast the condition in Babylonia, where the
individual, instead of the family, was recognized by the law
to that in Rome of a later time, when the family was the
unit of the state, and the pater familias managed all family
affairs without state interference or restriction.
2 Johns : Babylonian and Assyrian Laws, Contracts and Letters, 56, 58.
i76 THE wori^d's progress.
CHAPTER XI.
Morality of the Ancient Babylonians.
For some years past, the French explorer De Morgan
has been making extensive excavations at Susa, the capital
of ancient Persia, and before the rise of Persia, the capital
of Elam as early as 3000 b. c. In the winter of 1901-1902,
having removed layers of earth containing ruins of Persian
palaces, he reached deposits contemporary with some of the
old Elamite kings. Here was discovered a stone monument
inscribed with the code of Hammurabi. As we have seen,
this king ruled Babylonia about 2000 b. c. He it was who
united all the little city-states into one kingdom with its capi-
tal at Babylon. Proving himself a statesman as well as a
warrior, he devoted himself to the welfare of his subjects.
He repaired old canals and constructed new ones, restored
the temples and above all, gave the country a uniform system
of laws. These laws were not made by Hammurabi — gen-
erally speaking at least. They had been long established
by custom and he merely codified such customs and earlier
decisions into a system so that justice might be administered
alike throughout the realm. The laws were then inscribed
upon stone slabs and erected at certain places where the people
could read them, and those who felt themselves injured might
know what redress lay open to them.
The particular stele unearthed by De Morgan had been
set up originally in the town of Sippara. Later Elamite kings
became powerful enough to invade Babylonia and lay the
country under tribute. During this period, one Elamite king
had removed the stone monument from Sippara and taken it
home with his spoils. It had graced his triumphal procession
upon his return and was set up at his capital. 49 columns
of inscription were engraved upon it, but the Elamite king
caused 5 to be removed and the stone to be re-polished, in
order that his name might be therein inserted. For some
reason this was forgotten or omitted.
Of the 282 laws once carved upon the stele, all are still
legible. Their discovery is most important for the history
SOCIAL LIFE IN MESOPOTAMIA. 277
of ancient Babylonia, as it has enabled scholars to reconstruct
the standards of morality and justice current when the country
came into its first strength and power. We may be sure that
these laws were in vogue much earlier than the time of
Hammurabi and they lived on with little change for many
years after. They without doubt furnished the basis for the
legal code throughout the history of Babylonia, and with-
out some knowledge of them we would never have been able
to understand the civilization of the country as it is known
today. It is comparable to the "Mosaic Code," which is made up
of different strata from different periods, cir. 1000 B.C. to
500 B.C. The similarity between the two codes harks
back to an early period when the two peoples had not yet left
their Arabian home, and indicates general Semitic customs.
Hammurabi's code " is concerned little, if at all, with religious
matters; the chief content is almost entirely civil and criminal,
dealing with such subjects as marriage, the family, property
rights, agricultural and commercial activities."
It is on the basis of these laws now translated that the
morality of the ancient Babylonians has been worked out.
We find that the people were on the borderland of retaliation,
and punishments often took the form of fines. There was
still the old tribal " group responsibility " — that is, the chil-
dren often had to suffer for the sins of the father. Distinc-
tion was now made between intentional and unintentional in-
jury. Trial by ordeal was sometimes allowed, especially
when magic was thought to have been used. Death was a
frequent punishment. Banishment might be inflicted. On
the whole, the practices in Babylonia, before and after 2000
B. c, were not so severe as those common in England a century
ago, when petty larceny was met by extreme punishment
The Babylonians carried the idea of contract and written
agreement farther than any other ancient people. Under-
standings which are today made verbally between men were
inscribed on clay tablets, duly impressed by the seals of the
parties concerned, and carefully preserved. We find the law
required receipts and written contracts as early as 2000 b. c.
For example, " If a merchant has given to an agent corn
wool, oil, or any sort of goods to traffic with, the agent shall
write down the money value, and shall return that to the
merchant. The agent shall then take a sealed receipt for the
278 THE world's progress.
money that he has given to the merchant. If the agent for-
gets and has not taken a sealed receipt for the money he gave
to the merchant, . money that has not been acknowledged by
receipt shall not be put down in the accounts." ^ Regarding
m.oney given bankers : " If a man has given another gold,
silver, or any goods whatever on deposit, all that he gives
shall be shown to witnesses, and take a bond and so give on
deposit. If he has given on deposit without witnesses and
bonds, and has been defrauded where he made his deposit,
he has no claim to prosecute." *
" An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth " was demanded
by the Code of Hammurabi.
" If a man has knocked out the eye of a patrician, his eye
shall be knocked out.
" If he has broken the limb of a patrician, his limb shall
be broken.
" If he has knocked out the eye of a plebeian or has broken
the limb of a plebeian, he shall pay one mana of silver.
" If a patrician has knocked out the tooth of a man that
is his equal, his tooth shall be knocked out. If he has knocked
out the tooth of a plebeian, he shall pay one-third of a mana
of silver.
" If a man has struck another in a quarrel, and caused
him permanent injury, that- man shall swear, * I struck him
without malice,' and shall pay the doctor." *
Theft at a fire was made a capital offense. " If a fire
has broken out in a man's house and one who has come to put
it out has coveted the property of the householder and appro-
priated any of it, that man shall be cast into the self-same
fire." *
Fees of the surgeon were graded by law, and severe penal-
ties were inflicted for unskillful operations. Probably these
were not strictly enforced but were intended to prevent mal-
practice.
Marriage laws and regulations governing inheritance were
necessarily definite in a country where a man might have
more than one wife. Since perpetuation of a family through
J Johns : Babylonian and Assyrian Laws, Letters and Contracts ; Ham-
marabi's Code, 104. 105. 2 ibid., 122, 123. » Ibid., 196, 197. 198, 201. 206.
*Ibid., 25.
SOCIAL U?K IN MESOPOTAMIA. 279
adoption was frequent, laws protected both foster children
and foster parents.
" If a man has brought up a child, whom he has taken to
be his son, but has not reckoned him with his sons, that foster
child shall return to his father's house
" If a craftsman has taken a child to bring up and has
taught him his handiwork, he shall not be reclaimed. If he
has not taught him his handicraft, that foster child shall return
to his father's house."
Injury which today would necessitate the payment of
damages, in ancient Babylonia might even be punished with
death. " If a builder has built a house for a man, and has
not made his work sound, and the house he built has fallen,
and caused the death of its owner, that builder shall be put
to death. If it is the owner's son that is killed, the builder's
son shall be put to death.
"If he has caused the loss of goods, he shall render back
whatever he has destroyed. Moreover, because he did not
make sound the house he built, and it fell, at his own cost
he shall rebuild the house that fell."
Workmen were required to do faithful work or make
good consequent losses. " If a boatman has built a boat for
a man, and has not made his work sound, and in that same
year that boat is sent on a voyage and suffers damage, the
boatman shall rebuild that boat, and, at his own expense, shall
make it strong, or shall give a strong boat to the owner.
In a land where the cultivation of the soil was the great
industry, naturally many regulations refer to the lease of
ground and the rent to be paid by the farmer to the owner of
the estate. Because the very production of the soil depended
upon the maintenance of canals, neglect in the care of the
dikes was severely punished.
" If a man has hired a field to cultivate and has caused
no corn to grow on the field, he shall be held responsible for
not doing the work on the field and shall pay an average rent.
" If a man has given his garden to a gardener to farm,
the gardener, as long as he holds the garden, shall give the
owner of the garden two-thirds of the produce of the garden
and shall take one-third himself.
" If a man has neglected to strengthen his dike and has
aSo THB wori,d's progress.
not kept his dike strong-, and a breach has broken out in hi.«
4ike, and the waters have flooded the meadow, the man in
whose dike the breach has broken out shall restore the corn
he has caused to be lost. If he be not able to restore the
com, he and his goods shall be sold, and the owners of the
meadow whose corn the water has carried away shall share
the money.
" If a man has opened his runnel for watering and has
left it open, and the water has flooded his neighbor's field,
he shall pay him an average crop."
That justice might be administered uniformly throughout
the realm, courts were established in different cities, and Ham-
marabi insured the well-being of his subjects by further creat-
ing a court of appeals, held in Babylon. To this superior
court anyone, thinking himself unfairly treated in the lower
courts, might have a hearing. Perjury was severely punished.
" If a man has borne false witness in a trial, or has not
established the statement that he has made, if that case be
a capital trial, that man shall be put to death.
" If he has borne false witness in a civil law case, he
shall pay the damages in that suit." Judges were always
restricted by law and were held to strict account in administer-
ing justice. Any suspicion of bribery expelled the judge
from his seat.
" If a judge has given a verdict, rendered a decision,
granted a written judgment, and afterwards has altered his
judgment, that judge shall be prosecuted for altering the judg-
ment he gave and shall pay twelvefold the penalty laid down
in that judgment. Further, he shall be publicly expelled from
his judgment-seat and shall not return nor take his seat with
the judges at a trial."
Other public servants were required to deal justly with
the people. Governors of provinces who oppressed the in-
habitants or in any way were unjust to those dependent upon
them, laid themselves liable to a death sentence if charges
against them could be proven.
In the light of these laws we would conclude that the
Babylonians had reached a high stage of morality when au-
thentic history of their kingdom begins. Honesty, truth, fair-
dealing, — these were demanded by the laws of the realm, and
SOCIAL LIFE IN MESOPOTAMIA. 28t
penalties attached to crimes violating them. One who was
injured must bring his cause before a judge and allow dis-
interested persons to render a decision. Instead of retaliation
upon the assailant, money was sometimes received as com-
pensation for injury. In more flagrant cases, the law imposed
the penalty of death. A man could not slander his neighbor
without risk of punishment.
" If the claimant of lost property has not brought the
witnesses that know his lost property, he has been guilty of
slander, he has stirred up strife, he shall be put to death.
" If a man has not his witnesses at hand, the judge shall
set him a fixed time not exceeding six months, and if within
six months he has not produced his witnesses, the man has
lied ; he shall bear the penalty of the suit."
Protection was assured the weak and helpless by this
code. It was customary to receive hostages as security for
debt — the debtor's son and slave. Such a hostage was en-
titled to fair treatment and a law made it an offense to mis-
use him. " If a hostage has died of blows or want in the
house of the creditor, the owner of the hostage shall prose-
cute his creditor, and if the deceased were free-born, the
creditor's son shall be put to death ; if a slave, the creditor shall
pay one-third of a mana of silver, furthermore, he shall lose
whatever it was that he lent."
Regarding intemperance among the Babylonians, they used
beer freely, but appear to have gone to no such excesses as
were common among the Egyptians. The price of beer was
fixed by law and an overcharge was punishable by drowning.
The morality of the people seems to have been very slightly
influenced by their religion. While all Semitics have been
strongly religious people, the Babylonians had reached a cer-
tain degree of secularism in their religion. Their temples
were financial centers for the country and were of more direct
interest to the people because from them they might negotiate
small loans to tide them over emergencies perhaps than because
the deity of the locality had there his center of worship.
A lengthy prologue setting forth the titles of Hammurabi
and the gods that gave him power, preceded his code of laws.
These were followed by an epilogue similar in nature. The
282
THE world's progress.
king calls down curses upon any future ruler who should
cause his wholesome regulations to be altered. " In the future,
in days to come, at any time, let the king who is in the land,
guard the words of righteousness which I have written on
my stele. Let him not alter the judgment of the land which
I judged nor the decisions I decided. Let him not destroy my
bas-relief. If that man has wisdom and is capable of directing
his land, let him attend to the words which I have written upon
my stele, let him apprehend the path, the rule, the law of the
land which I judged, and the decision I decided for the land,
and so let him guide forward the black-headed race; let him
judge their judgment and decide their decision, let him cut
off from his land the proud and violent, let him rejoice in the
flesh of his people.'"
Blessings were given him who 'should respect this code of
laws and terrible curses heaped upon any who might disregard
it. Much of Babylonia's prosperity appears to have resulted
from the enforcement of these impartial judgments.
"Johns: Babylonian and Assyrian Laws, Letters and Contracts; Ham*
marabi's Code, 104, 105.
BABYLONIAN BRICK. THE KING S NAME AND TITLES
WERE INSCRIBED ON EACH BRICK.
SOCIAL wet IN MESOPOTAMIA. 283
CHAPTER XII.
Literature and Learning.
The Babylonians produced quite an extensive literature.
Their writings treated of religion, mathematics, astronomy,
astrology and geography, while some attempt was made to ex-
plain animal and plant life. History in Babylonia was limited
almost wholly to royal inscriptions and lists of kings. In
Assyria, on the other hand, the greater portion of the literature
related to history, and the kings set forth the happenings of
their reigns with directness and considerable detail. Diplo-
matic affairs, correspondence with Babylonia and foreign prov-
inces, official letters, tribute lists and royal decrees, make up
a large part of the surviving tablets.
We have already spoken of the library of Asshurbanipal,
or the Ninevan library, and have seen what a world of light
was thrown upon Assyrian civilization when its surviving
tablets were at last deciphered. Babylonia maintained libraries,
however, before Nineveh was founded.
These clustered, for reasons which we shall soon see,
around the temples. At Erech were early collected writings
which were concerned with the religion of the ancient Chal-
deans, together with the myths and legends of the country.
So many tablets were preserved in this temple that Erech was
called the " city of books." A library, rich in mathematical
lore, grew up at Larsa, another at Nippur, and still another at
Cathah. Smaller libraries were attached to all the great
temples.
When we speak of " libraries " in Mesopotamia, collections
of clay tablets are meant. Rooms were frequently provided
within the temples for the storing of these clay books. The
size of the tablet varied greatly. The largest were flat and
about 9 by 6}^ inches; smaller ones were slightly convex,
while tiny ones, not more than one inch long, containing but
a line or two. have been found. Sometimes the lettering is
so fine that it could have been done only with the aid of a lens,
and it cannot be read without one.
284 THE WORIvD'S progress.
In these valleys, the cheapest, most available writing ma-
terial was the soft clay, ever in evidence. When bricks had
been partially dried in the sun, a substance was formed which
readily received impressions, and these became firm as the
tablet hardened. Both sides and sometimes the edges as well,
were written upon, and little pegs of wood provided legs for
the brick to rest upon when reversed, that the soft impressions
might not be injured. To make the whole proof against fire
and water, it was finally baked in an oven. When so treated,
a material was made which proved more enduring against
action of the elements than either parchment or papyrus.
It is quite certain that papyrus and possibly parchment as
well were used for writing purposes, especially in the later
period, but no fragment of either has survived.
Certain disadvantages attached to the cheap tablets. They
were heavy and unwieldy to hold or carry, but more especially,
they allowed no embellishments or lengthy descriptions. Owing
to the laborious method of transcribing records, everything was
of necessity abbreviated and simplified. Thus we see how one
thing acts upon another — the country afforded only clay
tablets for writing material; these, limited because of size
and weight, curtailed speech and so influenced the style of
expression.
Occasionally one tablet constituted a book, but more often
several tablets were needed to contain the entire writing.
Thus the Deluge Story is the eleventh tablet, or chapter, of a
series numbering twelve in all. Seventy tablets composed a
single work on astronomy, while the three books comprising
the earliest religious texts covered 200 tablets. Each tablet
was carefully numbered and known by the first line of the
book; as, for example, one work treated on the creation and
began : " Formerly that which is above was not yet called
the heaven ;" so the first tablet of the series was entitled :
" Formerly that which is above, No. 1 ;" the second, " For-
merly that which is above. No. 2," and so on through the
entire series.
The ancient Chaldeans believed that literature and the
art of writing were gifts from the gods, and in the myth
which to them explained how knowledge came into the world,
it was numbered among the things taught them by the Man-
SOCIAL U?E IN MESOPOTAMIA. 285
Fish, Cannes. This is the myth as Berosus told it : " There
was originally at Babylonia a multitude of men of foreign
race who had colonized Chaldea, and they lived without order,
like animals. But in the first year (of the new order of
things) there appeared from out the Persian Gulf where it
borders upon Babylonia, an animal endowed with reason, who
was called Oannes. The whole body of the animal was that
of a fish, but under the fish's head he had another head, and
also feet below, growing out of his fish's tail, similar to those
of a man ; also human speech, and his image is preserved to this
day. This being used to spend the whole day amidst men,
without taking any food, and he gave them an insight into let-
ters, and sciences, and every kind of art ; he taught them how
to found cities, to construct temples, to introduce laws and to
measure land; he showed them how to sow seeds and gather
in crops ; in short, he instructed them in everything that soft-
ens manners and makes up civilization, so that from that time
no one has invented anything new. Then, when the sun went
down, this monstrous Oannes used to plunge back into the sea
and spend the night in the midst of the boundless waves, for
he was amphibious."
It was believed that learning and letters were under the
special protection of the gods, and for this reason it was fitting
to preserve books in the temples. The libraries thus established
were cared for by scribes and were open to the public. Many
were engaged constantly in copying, repairing and taking care
of the tablets. An order of celibate priests, not unlike the
monks of the Middle Ages, devoted itself to the task of book-
making, regarding the work as a pious undertaking.
Among the most ancient books recovered is one containing
bits of folk-lore, popular songs and maxims. One of the
maxims runs:
"Like an oven that is old
Against thy foes be hard and strong."
A fragment of a ploughman's song says :
"My knees are marching — my feet are not resting;
With no wealth of thy own — grain thou makest for me."
The Creation legends were among the most ancient writ-
ings.
1—20
286 THE world's progress.
'^A plant had not been brought forth, a tree had not been created.
A brick had not been made, a beam had not been formed.
A house had not been built, a city had not been constructed.
A city had not been made, earthly things had not been made
glorious.
Nipur had not been built, (its temple) E-kura had not been con-
structed.
Erech had not been built, (its temple) E-Ana had not been con-
structed.
The deep had not been made, Eridu had not been constructed.
As for the glorious temple (of Eridu), the house of the gods, its
seat had not been made.
The whole of the lands, the sea also, (had not been formed).
When within the sea the current was
In that day Eridu was made. E-Sagila was constructed,
E-Sagila which the god Lugal-du-azagga founded within the
deep;
Babylon (also) was built, E-Sagila was completed.
The gods and the spirits of the earth were made altogether.
The glorious city, the seat of the joy of their hearts, supremely
they proclaimed.
Merodack (Marduk) bound together the slime before the water.
Dust he made and he poured it out with the flood.
The gods were made to dwell in a seat of joy of heart.
He created mankind.
The god Aruru, the seed of mankind, they made with him.
He made the beasts of the field and the living creatures of the
desert.
He made the Tigris and Euphrates, and set (them) in (their)
places
Well proclaimed he their name.
The ussu-plant, the dittu-plant of the marshland, the reed and
the forest he made.
He made the verdure of the plain ;
The lands, the marshes, and the greensward also;
Oxen, the young of the horse, the stallion, the mare, the sheep,
the locust;
Meadows and forests also.
The he-goat and the gazelle brought forth to him.'"
• George Smith : Babylonia, 46.
SOCIAI. WFE IN MESOPOTAMIA. 287
Babylonian myths often took the form of epics. The epic
of Gilgamesh was popular. Twelve tablets composed it, each
corresponding to a zodiacal sign. The Deluge Story made up
the eleventh chapter. Another epic, the Descent of Ishtar into
Arallu, or Hades, was well known. Ishtar, herself a goddess,
mourned a departed god, her consort, so greatly that she
braved the terrors of the underworld to find him and to carry
him water from the fountain of life, that he might rejoin her.
This was the earliest form of a myth which later appeared in
many lands.
Astronomy had its birth in astrology — the so-called science
which sought to discover the influences of the planets upon the
destinies of mankind. This science was firmly believed in and
strongly supported for centuries after the Christian era, and
has its followers even today.
Mathematics had a similar beginning. Geometrical figures
were used for augury. In arithmetic, 60 was a favorite number
for computation, and the division of a circle into seconds,
minutes and degrees, dates from this time.
Geography consisted merely of lists of seas, mountains,
rivers, waters, nations, and cities then known. Grammars and
dictionaries were plentiful because they were needed even
at that time for an understanding of a language, already
" dead," but still the language of literature.
In the realm of history, royal inscriptions may be included.
With the rise of Assyria these came to be more complete.
Fewer set phrases, copied by each king from most ancient
times, were used and more information was included concern-
ing the subject at hand. For example, an inscription of Tig-
lathpileser I. (about 1100 b. c.) filled eight sides of a clay
cylinder, and contained 809 lines. It consisted of ( 1 ) an invo-
cation to the gods who had given him power; (2) set forth his
titles and summed up the deeds of his reign; (3) 500 lines
recounted the campaigns of his first year; (4) 200 lines de-
scribed his royal hunts and his temples built and restored; (5)
finally a blessing was pronounced upon those who shall honor
his deeds and a curse is given those who ignore them.
Both nations loved justice and delighted in formality. All
kinds of agreements were put into writing and were duly
288 thS worij)'s progress.
witnessed. To the original code of laws in Babylonia, court
decisions were added and together comprised the later law of
the land. All important cases were abstracted and the decision
of the judges given at length on tablets which have been pre-
served in many cases with the signature of the judge. The
judges were appointed by the king. Priests were eligible,
but others often served. There was probably a court in the
vicinity of every important temple, which has given a general
impression that the priests took entire charge of court proceed-
ings.
Education was much more widely diffused in Babylonia
than in Assyria. In the former country both girls and boys
seem to have received some elementary training in the art of
reading and writing. Schools for the training of scribes were
maintained in coimection with each of the great temples.
Tutors were doubtless employed in families of the nobility,
but little is known of the training of the young. The art of
writing was a difficult one to master and required the memoriz-
ing of a large number of symbols. There must have been
much truth in the sentence found often in the children's
copy-books : " He who would become a scribe must rise with
the dawn." In the school of Sippara a tablet has been found
which is supposed to have been either a medal or a diploma
given by the school. An inscription upon it reads : " Whoso-
ever has distinguished himself at the place of tablet writing
shall shine as the light."" The calling of the scribe was an
honorable one and his social position was good.
One indication that people of the better classes in Baby-
lonia could write is to be found in the number of personal let-
ters which have been found. These are not written, as in
Assyria, in one uniform handwriting, but show many varia-
tions and degrees of perfection.
In Assyria writing was a profession, and only trades-
people whose business compelled them to understand rudi-
mentary writing, public officials and the upper classes under'
stood the art. Public scribes wrote many private letters, much
in the same way as a lawyer of today might draw up some
document, and to the letter so written, the sender affixed his
seal.
Learning was limited in the northern kingdom to the
favored few. Some of the kings were book collectors. This
SOCIAL LIFE IN MESOPOTAMIA 289
was notably true of Assurbanipal who sent his men every-
where to gather up tablets of worth and antiquity.
Letters which have been translated help to bring these
early days before us. This one was probably sent by a lover
to the object of his adoration:
" To Bibea say, thus saith Gimil-Marduk : May Shamash
and Marduk for my sake preserve thy health forever. I have
sent for thy health. Tell me how thou art. I went to Babylon
and did not see thee. I was greatly disappointed. Send me the
reason of thy leaving, and let me be cheered. In Marchevan
do thou come. For my sake keep well always."*
The next is written by the captain of a river barge to
King Sennacherib, concerning the transporting of colossal bulls.
" To the king my lord, thy servant Asshur-mukin has or-
dered me to transport in boats the colossal bulls and cherubim
of stone. The boats are not strong enough and are not ready.
But if a present be kindly made to us, we will see that they
are got ready, and ascend the river."
If the writer of the third failed to have his request granted,
it could scarcely be for lack of persistence in making it known.
It is a letter written by a tenant to his landlord, and belongs
to the age of Abraham :
" To my lord say, thus saith Ibgatum thy servant : As, my
lord, thou hast heard, the enemy has carried off my oxen.
Never before have I sent to thee, my lord. Now I have
caused a letter to be brought to thee, my lord, Do thou, my
lord, send me one young cow. I will weigh out and send five
shekels of silver to thee, my lord. My lord, what thou sayest,
under the command of Marduk, thy protector, what pleases
thee, no one can hinder thee, my lord. My lord, do thou
make her worth the five shekels of silver that I have weighed
out and sent to thee. Do thou, my lord, treat seriously this
request, do not trifle with my wish. Let my lord not wonder
at this request, which I send my lord. I am thy servant. I
will do thy will, my lord. As to the young cow, which thou,
my lord, dost send, let her be on credit, and either to Basu,
or wherever is convenient .to my lord, do thou send. With
Iliikisham, my brother, let the young cow come. And I, in
order that my lord should quickly consent and send the young
2 Johns : Baby, and Assy. Laws Letters and Contracts, 336.
290 THE world's progress.
cow, will forthwith weigh out and send fifteen shekels of silver
to thee, my lord."'
Sayce has suggested that the five shekels of silver was the
amount he paid annually for the lease of his farm, and that he
sent it at this time to further influence the landlord to grant
his request. Another interpretation has been put upon it that
he sent the five shekels as a payment down, but did not propose
to pay the full price until he saw the particular cow sent him.
Letters were enclosed generally in an envelope of clay.
Powdered clay was sprinkled over the letter to prevent its
clinging to the cover. Because the envelope of clay had to be
broken before the letter was read, safety and privacy was
proven by the unbroken cover. Again the tablet upon which
the letter was inscribed was sometimes covered with a linen
wrapper and the ends held by a seal — a lump of clay pressed
down with the Impression of the seal upon it. Few of these
clay or linen envelopes have been found, for they were re-
garded as valueless and were cast aside. A very fair postal
system was maintained in Mesopotamia.
" Babylonian and Assyrian letters were treated much as
ours are when they are put into a post-bag to which the seals
of the post-office are attached. There were excellent roads all
over Western Asia, with post-stations at intervals where relays
of horses could be procured. Along these all letters to or
from the king and the government were carried by royal mes-
sengers. It is probable that the letters of private individuals
were also carried by the same hands. . . . The civilized
and oriental world was bound together by a network of postal
routes over which literary intercourse was perpetually passing.
They extended from the Euphrates to the Nile and from the
plateau of Asia Minor to the confines of Arabia. These routes
followed the old lines of war and trade along which armies had
marched and merchantmen had traveled for unnumbered gen-
erations. The Tell-el-Aniarna tablets show that letter-writing
was not confined to Assyria and Babylonia on the one hand,
or to Egypt on the other. Wherever the ancient culture of
Babylonia had spread, there had gone with it not only the
cuneiform characters and the use of clay as a writing material,
but the art of letter-writing as well." *
» Johns : Baby, and Assy. Laws, Letters and Contracts, 334.
* Sayce : Life and Customs in Baby, and Assy., 228.
SOCIAL LIFE IN MESOPOTAMIA. 29I
Fifteen hundred and seventy-five letters alone were found
in the library of Asshurbanipal, unearthed by Layard. This
great Assyrian king sent scribes throughout Babylonia to
visit ancient temples and copy tablets on which were preserved
ancient writings. Some thirty thousand were collected before
his death and they treated of all subjects known at that time.
It was remarkable that when this splendid palace fell into ruins,
many of these tablets remained uninjured, and, having laid
undisturbed for twenty-five hundred years, were finally
brought to light some fifty years ago to give the world of today
their old-time messages.
Deluge Story — Column III.
"The surface of the land like fire they wasted ;
they destroyed all life from the face of the land ;
to battle against men they brought the waters.
Brother saw not his brother ; men knew not one another.
In heaven the gods feared the flood and
hastened to ascend to the heaven of Anu.
The gods, like dogs in the kennel, crouched down in a heap.
Six days and nights ...
the wind, the flood, and the storm go on overwhelming.
The seventh day, when it approached, the flood subsided, the
storm which had fought against men like an armed host
was quieted. The sea began to dry, and the wind and the flood
ended.
I beheld the sea and uttered a cry,
for the whole of mankind was turned to clay;
like trunks the corpses floated.
I opened the window, and light smote upon my face;
I stopped and sat down; I wept;
over my face flowed my tears.
I beheld a shore beyond the sea ;
a district rose twelve times distant.
On the mountain of Nizir the ship grounded;
the mountain of Nizir stopped the ship, and it was not able to
pass over it
292 THS WORI^D'S progress.
The first day, the second day, the mountain of Nizir stopped tTie
ship.
The third day, the fotirth day, the mountain of Nizir stopped the
ship.
The fifth day, the sixth day, the mountain of Nizir stopped the
ship.
The seventh day when it approached
I sent forth a dove, and it left. The dove went in and returned
and found no resting place, and it came back.
Then I sent forth a swallow, and it left. The swallow went and
returned,
and found no resting place, and it came back.
I sent forth a raven, and it left.
The raven went, and saw the going down of the waters, and
it approached, it waded, it croaked; it did not return.
I sent the animals to the four winds; I sacrificed a sacrifice
I built an altar on the peak of the mountain.
I sent vessels ... by sevens ;
underneath them I spread reeds, cedar-wood, and herbs.
The gods smelt the savour; the gods smelt the good savour;
the gods gathered like flies over the sacrifices.
Thereupon the great goddess at her approach
lifted up the mighty bow which Anu had created according to
his wishes.
These gods, by my necklace, never will I forget.'*
ISHTAR. FROM AN ASSYRIAN CYLINDER.
iOCIAI, UFS IN MESOPOTAMIA. 293
CHAPTER XIII.
CI.OTHING.
The Babylonians and Assyrians were very fond of dress.
There were three essentials to Mesopotamian dress, and acces-
sories depended upon the taste and purse of the wearer. A
head-dress, a tunic and a robe were the main features of one's
apparel, although all were not of necessity worn by the lower
classes. The head-dress was frequently of felt and was some
times quilted; the tunic was generally made of linen when
worn in Babylonia and of wool in Assyria; the robe was
long, falling to the ankles; it was often of wool and was fin-
ished with a deep fringe. The tunic and some times the robe
as well were belted at the waist by a wide and elaborate
girdle. Women's garments were similar to those worn by
men, but their robes fell in more ample folds. Naturally
fashions changed and a garment worn in the days of the
Semitic invasion would have appeared odd and out of date
in the age of Asshurbanipal.
Early portraits of kings show them clad in thick quilted
skirts falling to the ankles, while quilted turbans covered their
heads. Later robes took the place of the skirt. Parasols
were carried in Babylonia as protection against the heat, but
in Assyria they gradually became the privilege of the royal
family. In portraits of later Assyrian kings, the parasol
is frequently shown. This custom may have been borrowed
from Persia.
Ordinarily no head-dress was worn by the lower classes
in Babylonia unless, perhaps, to denote some special calling.
Certain musicians appear with caps. The devotees of fashion
probably donned head-dresses at pleasure.
Jewelry was popular with both men and women, even the
poor being adorned with necklaces, bracelets, anklets. Shoes
and sandals were seldom worn in the southern kingdom. In
Assyria, naturally a colder climate brought about some varia-
tions of dress. High boots and leather breeches were worn by
the soldiers of later periods; shoes were needed to protect
294 th^ world's progress.
the feet from frosty ground, and cloaks were required in
addition to the usual robe. •
Embroidered and imported robes, smart hats and other
details of wearing apparel were characteristic of later periods
when wealth and leisure gave opportunity for such indulgen-
ces. Certain it is that the simple tunic sufficed in early days,
and rank was indicated by its greater or abbreviated length.
The ancient Chaldeans or Sumerians always shaved their
heads and faces. Influenced by this custom, the Babylonians
did not wear long beards. The Assyrians, more purely Sem-
itic, wore long ones and had hair dressers largely in the place
of barbers, who curled both their beards and hair.
A word should be said of the costumes of the priests. They
may always be distinguished on the monuments by their long,
flounced robes, reaching nearly to the ground. Because the
goat was an animal of special sanctity, a goat-skin was in-
variably thrown over the shoulder — quite as the Egyptian
priest wore the skin of a leopard.
In connection with the jewelry worn by men, we may con-
sider the little cylinders which served as seals. In Babylonia,
because of the scarcity of stone, even tiny pebbles were valued,
and it came to be the custom to have these cut in cylindrical
shapes by expert stone-cutters. An opening was made through-
out their length to allow a cord or chain to pass through. This
attached the cylinder to the owner's wrist. Upon the round
surface of the cylinder were engraved various designs and
figures, and a few words explaining the identity of the wearer,
name of his father and other noteworthy facts regarding him.
His name was affixed, and with this he stamped his letters and
all documents. To be without a cylinder was almost as in-
convenient as to be without a name. The very poor, who could
not afford such a seal, were obliged to make a nail-mark in
the soft clay, while some one wrote the name of the person
to whom that particular mark belonged. The possessor of
a cylinder had only to pass it over the clay and his signature
was made. Many of these little cylinders have been recovered,
and some lack the name of an owner, showing that they had
been made by a gem-cutter, but had not yet found a buyer.
social life in mesopotamia. 295
Food.
Food was easily obtained in Mesopotamia, and consisted
mainly of grains and dried fish. Cereals were made into little
cakes and seasoned with dates or some other fruit. Fish
and fowl were plentiful; many kinds of fruits and vegetables
were grown, and wine and beer were universally used. Lack-
ing the tomb-pictures of Egypt, we know less about the food
and its preparation in the Euphrates valley.
Sports and Pastimes.
For our knowledge of ancient Babylonian and Assyrian
life, we are dependent largely upon scenes depicted on palace
walls, especially the walls of royal dwellings. These scenes
commemorate the doings of the king particularly, and where
laborers, slaves and the common people are shown at all, they
are seen at work, building palaces and temples, marching to
battle, swelling the triumphal processions, or they are cultivat-
ing the fields, storing away the grain — all to the glory of
the realm and consequently to the king. Naturally then, we
know little about the pastimes of the masses. They no doubt
thronged the streets on festivals, for then they were free
from work. Even labor on royal palaces — always pushed with
all possible speed — was then suspended. Every day in the
year had its own significance, but five days each month were
of particular importance, being sacred to the gods, and were
duly observed. Worship and merry-making were in a measure
mingled. Other days for popular observance were those in
which the king and the army returned from successful wars.
A triumphal procession passed slowly through the streets on
its way to the temple, where thanksgiving was rendered the
gods who had made victory possible. Such occasions were
always holidays, and the people in gay attire, gathered to wit-
ness the home-coming of their sovereign, and to gaze in wonder
at the booty and the captives.
Two recreations pictured on the palace walls were enjoyed
only by the nobles and the wealthy classes — the hunt and the
banquet. In modern times, when those in high position have
occasionally laid down important matters for a brief while to
seek recreation in hunting, fishing and out of door life, they
296 TH^ world's progress.
have taken opportunity to throw off much of the convention-
ality surrounding their every-day life and have found some
diversion in " roughing it," — in sharing the varying fortune
likely to befall those who leave the certain comforts of home
for the uncertain conditions to be met away from the centers
of civilization. Such was not at all the case with the kings
of Assyria when they left their capitals to hunt the lion in
its distant jungles and marshes. In the palace of Sennacherib
and Asshurbanipal, hunts have been depicted throughout their
progress. We may see the king marching out of the city in
his state chariot, his charioteer at his side, while behind him
an attendant holds high an embroidered parasol over his
kingly head to protect him from the rays of the sun. Nobles
accompany him on horses and they, together with the guards
and retinue of servants, make up a small army. Goats and
cattle are driven along, that his majesty and his nobles may
have fresh milk and meat throughout their absence; a sumptu-
ous tent shelters the king when the procession stops for the
night, while each noble tries to pitch his tent near the more
splendid one of his king. Maspero has graphically described
the hunt. Some wild oxen have been discovered, and the
king gives chase:
" In less time than we can speak, three of the bulls are
rolling on the ground, pierced with several arrows; the four
others but slightly wounded, turn round and gallop towards
the river. Asshurbanipal follows the largest of them, which
he is almost sure is wounded in the shoulder ; then gradually he
overtakes it, skillfully drives his chariot beside it without check-
ing speed, and laying aside his bow, grasps one of the poig-
nards he wears in his belt. With one hand he seizes one of the
animal's horns, with the other he plunges his weapon into his
neck ; the short, wide blade divides the spine, between the neck
and shoulder, the bull falls like a stone. A flight of arrows
arrests the fugitives before they can reach the water ; the whole
herd is killed, except the old bull that escaped at first.
" The return to the camp is a triumphal march. As soon
as the sentinels signal the arrival of the party, soldiers, slaves,
women, all who are not bound by etiquette or military duty,
hurry to meet it, and form two lines, watching the procession.
The sight of the seven bulls, each carried by five or six men,
SOCIAL LIFE IN MESOPOTAMIA. 297
almost causes them to forget the respect due to royalty. They
exclaim upon the size of the animals, the strength of their
horns, the savage aspect given by their manes; they praise
their master's skill, and loudly thank the gods who have
favored him with such rare and terrible game. Asshurbanipal
has left his chariot in front of his tent, and now prepares to
return thanks for his success to the lord Asshur and the lady
Ishtar. Two priests with their harps are waiting to commence
the hymns of praise. The bearers place the, oxen side by side
in a single line. The king, accompanied by his fly-flap and
sunshade-bearers, stands on the right, the bow in his left hand.
He takes the cup full of sacramental wine, which the vizier
presents to him, touches it with his lips, then partly empties
it over the victims whilst the musicians play. The same even-
ing a messenger will start for Nineveh to have the new exploit
graven upon stone. The picture will portray the departure,
the chase, the death, the solemn entry, and an inscription
placed above the last scene will tell posterity the name of the
victor. * I, Asshurbanipal, king of multitudes, king of Assyria,
whose power is secured by Asshur and Beltis, I have killed
seven oxen; I have strung the mighty bow of Ishtar, queen
of battles, against them, I have made an offering over them'
and poured wine upon them.'
" On the following day the dogs rouse three lions from
their jungle. These are killed after having made a desperate
resistance. * The three bodies are carried back to the camp,
then presented to Ishtar with the same ceremonies that had
celebrated the triumph over the wild bulls, and the sculptors
were ordered to represent the hand-to-hand struggle of the
sovereign and his savage foe. * I, Asshurbanipal, king of peo-
ples, king of Assyria, alone on foot, in my majesty, I seized
a lion of the desert by the ear; and by the mercy of Asshur
and Ishtar, queen of battles, I pierced its loins with my lance,
with mine own hands.' "*
A banquet sometimes celebrated the return from a fine
and successful hunt, but it faded into insignificance when
compared with the one held after the return from a war of
pillage and conquest. The entire population of the capital
became temporary guests of the king.
»Maspero: Ancient Egypt and Assj-ria, 260.
jg^ THE worIvD's progress.
" After the procession, the day is passed in a perfect frenzy
of joy by the whole nation. It is customary for all the in-
habitants of the city, slaves and freemen, to eat and drink
at the king's expense during the festival ; this is a method of
giving them a share of the booty. For seven days the palace
gates are open to all comers. Many colored stuffs suspended
over the walls by means of ropes have transformed the courts
into immense banqueting halls. The crowd is coming and
going from morning till night; the people install themselves
upon state-seats and ask for whatever they like; the slaves
have orders to give them anything they wish for, and to bring
each person whatever he desires as many times as he asks
for it. Women and children are admitted to these festivals
as well as men. The soldiers kept in barracks by their duty
are not forgotten; the king sends them the food and wine
they cannot fetch for themselves in so great profusion that
they have nothing to regret. The loaves disappear by thou-
sands, by thousands also the oxen, sheep, goats, and birds
of all kinds are sacrificed to satisfy the public appetite. But
what they eat is nothing to what they drink. The Assyrian
is sober in ordinary life, but he does not know how to stop
if he once allows himself any excess. Wines of Assyria and
Chaldea, wines from Elam, wines from Syria and Phoenicia,
wines from Egypt, the skins are emptied as soon as opened,
without visibly quenching the universal thirst. After one or
two days no brain is strong enough to resist it, and Nineveh
presents the extraordinary spectacle of a whole city in dif-
ferent degrees of intoxication ; when the festival is over, several
days are required before it resumes its usual aspect.
Whilst the people are becoming tipsy outside, Asshurbani-
pal feasts the leading chiefs and the ministers of state within
the palace. Unlike the common people, the nobles eat but
little, so that few dishes of meat are set before them, but
cakes and fruits of different kinds, grapes, dates, apples, pears,
and figs are brought in continual relays, by long lines of slaves.
On the other hand, they drink a great deal — with more re-
finement, perhaps, than the common people, but with equal
avidity.
The only persons who do not drink, or who drink little,
through the necessity of retaining their sobriety, are the guards.
SOCIAI. UFE IN MESOPOTAMIA.
299
the servants and the musicians. No festival is complete with-
out the presence of singers, and the king's musicians conscien-
tiously perform their finest melodies. Perhaps some one
listened to them at the beginning of the feast, but now that
the great silver bowls have been filled and emptied several
times, their music is literally wasted. They may sing out of
tune, or remain silent, just as they please, no one will listen
or care.
The court poet has placed the recital of the hero's life and
exploits, from the hour of his birth until the day of his tri-
umph, in his own mouth. He concluded by saying:
" * I am a strong warrior, beloved of Asshur and Ishtar,
the child of royalty. The gods have been gracious to me.
The wheat has grown to five cubits, and its ears of corn are
always one cubit long; during my reign, abundance has over-
flowed; during all the years of my reign, the divine blessing
has been poured out upon me like a heavy dew. The gods
have raised me higher than any king ever ascended before me.
Whilst Asshur and Ishtar support me, who can prevail against
me? My power is everlastingly founded by their hands,,
the duration of my race is established; they shall reign for
many days, and for everlasting years.' "*
* Maspero ; Ancient Egypt and Assyria, 3G8, ff.
ASSYRIAN KING IN ROYAL ROBES.
300 rut world's progress.
CHAPTER XIV.
Architecture and Decoration.
Architecture is evolved from religion as well as from nature.
Generally speaking, we find temples of worship to be the first
buildings erected by every people.
Because the Babylonians were limited by lack of other ma-
terial to sun or kiln-dried brick, and the Assyrians, devoid of
originality, limited themselves to the same baked clay, we
would scarcely expect to find pleasing or artistic buildings in
either state. Even in the dwellings of rich and poor, the
great difference was one of size. It was impossible to make a
clay wall very ornate, but the wealthy could have more walls
and broader expanse of bricks. Size, or hugeness, then, sig-
nified superiority. It naturally followed that the temple, the
noblest structure attempted by the Mesopotamians, was espe-
cially large, being called by a word which meant " mountain
house."
Large tracts of land were dedicated to the temples. Hav-
ing been consecrated by libations of wine, oil and honey, the
temple proper, consisting of halls or rooms surrounding an
inner court, was first erected. Near this arose the ziggurat
or tower, and many smaller buildings, not unlike private
dwellings. These served as residences for the priests, for the
temple school, store-houses for the sacred oil and other articles
pertaining to worship, and many other purposes. The entire
area was enclosed by a wall, and was ordinarily remote from
the noises of the city. Within this large enclosure other walls
surrounded buildings of special sanctity and importance.
Within the temple proper was an inner room where the statue
of the god was kept. This corresponded to the "holy of
holies " in a Jewish synagogue, and was entered only by the
priest or king.
The ziggurat or mountain house — for this alone was mas-
sive and high — ^built as symbolic of the mountain form which
the whole earth was supposed to assume, was a tower, some
times three, some times five or even seven stories high. The
SOCIAI. UFE IN MESOPOTAMIA. 3OI
t^emains of one of these ziggurats was discovered by Dr. Peters
and his explorers at Nippur, and is supposed to have been
built as early as 2700 b. c.
The ziggurat at Borsippa had a base of earthwork 272
feet on each side, and was 26 feet high. Above this founda-
tion arose two stories, 26 feet in height, each 42 feet less on
a side than the story below. Four stories, each 15 feet high,
followed, decreasing 42 feet on a side like the lower ones,
and the last, or seventh, story, was just 29 feet square. Stair-
ways wound around the outside of the tower, and it was
thought pleasing to the gods that worshippers should ascend
to the top. Each story was sacred to some particular god
whose statue it contained while the shrine of the most im-
portant deity was placed on top. Sometimes each story was
painted a different color.
The mass of worshippers, however, assembled at the temple
rather than the tower, and offerings were made at the base
of the ziggurat instead of at the top.
It was the ambition of the kings that the inner walls of
their buildings, whether temples or palaces, should *' shine
like the sunlight," and to this end gold, silver and precious
stones lent their gleams and glows to mural decorations.
Next in importance to the temples were royal palaces,
and in Assyria, where religion was given less prominence, the
temple was a mere adjunct of the palace. Here again, a large
inner court was surrounded by halls and rooms. The palace
court was paved and decorated and upon the inner walls of
the palace the skill of the artist was expended. The floors
were made of tiles, and these followed ingenious patterns.
Sometimes the floors were formed of bricks or tablets covered
with inscriptions deeply cut; then molten metal — brass or
bronze — was poured over the whole, and filling the depressions,
caused the entire floor to look like a curious and intricate
design.
It was comparatively easy to lay floors and raise walls of
bricks, but it was quite another thing to make roofs of them.
The longest rafters were obtained from the cedars of Lebanon
and these ranged from 30 to 40 feet in length. This prac-
tically determined the width of the halls and rooms, which
seem to have been even four times their width in length.
\— 21
302 THE WORI,D*S PROGRESS.
The monotony of the inner walls was relieved by alabaster
reaching around the halls from twelve to fifteen feet above the
floors, and held in place by strong iron clamps. On this
soft, yielding substance were portrayed scenes in the life and
exploits of the king — his campaigns, hunts, works of peace,
and acts of worship. These were executed in bas-relief after
the slabs were fitted into place. Above them extended a frieze
perhaps three feet in width, made of tiles painted in delicate
colors and laid in such a way as to form a picture or design.
We miss the gaudy colors so popular in Egypt. It has been
well said that the Assyrian artist sought to please by the ele-
gance of his forms and the harmony of his hues — not to
startle by a display of bright and strongly contrasted colors.
The palace of Sennacherib, second only to the temple of Kar-
nak in grandeur — covered an area of eight acres, and con-
tained some eighty apartments. The palace of Sargon at Khors-
abad had no less than 209 rooms. Of the scenes depicted
on the slabs of alabaster in the state apartments Rawlinson
writes at length : " The most striking characteristic of Sen-
nacherib's ornamentation is its strong and marked realism.
Mountains, rocks, trees, roads, rivers, lakes were regularly
portrayed, an attempt being made to represent the locality,
whatever it might be, as truthfully as the artist's skill and the
character of his material rendered possible. The species of
trees is distinguished, gardens, fields, ponds, reeds, are care-
fully represented ; wild animals are introduced, as stags, boars
and antelopes; birds fly from tree to tree, or stand over their
nests, feeding the young who stretch up to them ; fish disport
themselves in the water; fishermen ply their craft; boatmen
and agricultural laborers pursue their avocations; the scene
is, as it were, photographed, with all its features.
" In the same spirit of realism, Sennacherib chooses for
artistic representation scenes of a commonplace and everyday
character. The trains of attendants who daily enter his pal-
ace with game and locust for his dinner, and cakes and fruit
for his dessert, appear on the walls of the passages exactly as
they walked through his courts bearing the delicacies in which
he delighted. Elsewhere he puts before us the entire process of
carving and transporting a colossal bull, from the first removal
of the huge stone in its rough state from the quarry to its final
elevation on a palace mound, as part of the great gateway of a
SOCIAIv LIFE IN MESOPOTAMIA. 303
royal residence. We see the trackers dragging the rough block,
supported on a low flat-bottomed boat, along the course of a
river, disposed in gangs, each gang having a costume of its
own which probably marked its nation, under taskmasters
armed with staves, who urged on the labor with blows. The
whole scene must be represented, and so the trackers are there,
to the number of three hundred, each delineated with as much
care as if he were not the exact image of ninety-nine others.
We then observe the block transferred to land, and carved into
the rough semblance of a bull, in which form it is placed on
a rude sledge and conveyed along level land by gangs of la-
borers, arranged nearly as before, to the foot of the mound at
whose top it has to be placed. The construction of the mound
is elaborately represented. Brickmakers are seen moulding the
bricks at its base, while workmen with baskets at their backs,
full of earth, brick, stone, or rubbish toil up the ascent — for the
mound is already half raised — and empty their burdens out
upon the summit. The bull, still lying on its sledge, is then
drawn up an inclined plane to the top by four gangs of laborers,
in the presence of the monarch and his attendants. After this
the carving is completed, and the colossus, having been raised
into an upright position, is conveyed along the surface of the
platform to the exact site which it is to occupy."
Guarding the portals of the palaces stood the winged bulls
and lions, in pairs. They were thought to ward off demons and
to inspire awe in those who beheld them. They were formed
with five legs, in order that the spectator, whether he viewed
them from the front or side, might still see the usual four.
Speaking of these great stone creatures, Layard wrote : " I
used to contemplate for hours these mysterious emblems, and
muse over their intent and history. What more noble forms
could have ushered the people into the temple of their gods?
What more sublime images could have been borrowed from
nature by men who sought, unaided by the light of revealed
religion, to embody their conception of the wisdom, power and
ubiquity of a Supreme Being ? They could find no better type
of intellect and knowledge than the head of a man ; of strength,
than the body of a lion ; of rapidity of motion than the wings
of a bird. These winged human-headed lions were not idle
creations, the offspring of mere fancy ; their meaning was writ-
304 THB wori^d's progress.
ten upon them. They had awed and instructed races which
flourished three thousand years ago. Through the portals
which they guarded, kings, priests, and warriors had borne
sacrifices to their altars long before the wisdom of the East
had penetrated to Greece, and furnished its mythology with
symbols long recognized by the Assyrian votaries.
" They may have been buried, and their existence may have
been unknown before the foundation of the Eternal City. For
twenty-five centuries they had been hidden from the eye of
man, and they now stood forth once more in their ancient
majesty. But how changed was the scene around them ! The
luxury and civilization of a mighty nation had given place to
the wretchedness and ignorance of a few half -barbarous tribes.
The wealth of temples and the riches of the great cities had
been succeeded by ruins and shapeless heaps of earth. Above
the spacious hall in which they stood the plow had passed
and the corn now waved. Egypt has monuments no less an-
cient and no less wonderful, but they have stood forth for
ages to testify her early power and renown, while these before
me had but now appeared to bear witness, in the words of the
prophet, that once * the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon with
fair branches. . . . Now is Nineveh desolate and dry
like a wilderness, and flocks lie down in the midst of her.' "
Babylon was probably the most beautiful city of antiquity.
Nebuchadnezzar II. surrounded the capital with walls of such
solidity that it is supposed the city could never have been taken
by assault. His father began the fortifications, and it was left
for the greatest Babylonian king to complete them and make
them even more secure. Between the outer and inner walls,
wide distances were left. Here trees and gardens were planted.
This space was provided for nearby villagers in times of siege,
and it was also intended that here fields of grain might be
grown to sustain the population under such trying conditions.
Herodotus described these walls: "And here I may not
omit to tell the use to which the mould dug out of the great
moat was turned, nor the manner wherein the wall was
wrought. As fast as they dug the moat, the soil which they
got from the cutting was made into bricks, and when a suffi-
cient number were completed, they baked the bricks in kilns.
Then they set to building and began with bricking the borders
SOCIAI. UFE IN MESOPOTAMIA. 305
of the moat, after which they proceeded to construct the wall
itself, using throughout for their cement hot bitumen, and in-
terposed a layer of wattled reeds at every thirtieth course of
the bricks." According to this writer the outer wall was
14 miles in circumference, 93 feet thick, and 370 feet in height,
but it is supposed that he included the city of Borsippa, across
the river, within the length of wall, and no doubt he com-
puted the height to include the lofty towers built at intervals
along the wall, to give sentinels a wide outlook over the coun-
try. These walls the Greeks included among the wonders of
the world, and probably ancient warfare could not have de-
stroyed them.
The Hanging Gardens of this great city were also enumer-
ated among the world's wonders. These are said to have been
built by Nebuchadnezzar for his Median queen, who wearied
of the dull, flat country of Babylonia, and pined for her moun-
tain home. The lowest terrace arose some 500 feet square,
and three other terraces, supported by arches and pillars, were
constructed above it, each smaller than the one beneath. These
four platforms or terraces were covered with soil drawn up in
carts, and the earth was deep enough to grow large trees, as
well as all kinds of plants and vines. A pump house was
located on top, water being drawn from the river and forced
all through the structure, while the pipes were carefully con-
cealed. Broad stairways led up to the uppermost terraces
where a residence was built for the favorite queen. Hanging
gardens had been built in Nineveh by former kings, but none
so splendid as these nor on so gigantic a scale. Seen from
afar, overtowering the high walls of the city, their height ac-
centuated by the vast expanse of level land, the effect was that
of a low mountain, clothed in verdure and scenting the breeze
with the blended fragrance of its beautiful flowers.
The population of Babylon was probably above 500,000
and the city contained more wealthy families than any other
in Asia. The houses of these added to the beauty of the place,
while two royal palaces, one on either side of the Euphrates,
exceeded all former splendor in the southland. Streets were
laid out at right angles, and the more important ones terminated
in high gates leading out of the city walls. These gates were
made of cedar and covered with bronze plates. Well might
3o6
THE worIvD's progress.
Nebuchadnezzar exclaim : " Is not this great Babylon, which
I have built for the royal dwelling-place, by the might of my
power, and for the glory of my majesty?" And again:
" For the astonishment of men I built this house ; awe of the
power of my majesty encompasses its walls. The temples
of the great gods I made brilliant as the sun, shining as the
day. In Babylon alone I raised the seat of my dominion, in
no other city!"
becoration in enameled tiles on one of the gates of the harem in
sargon's palace.
SOCIAI. UF^ IN MESOPOTAMIA. ^
CHAPTER XV.
Religion.
We have learned something of the primitive rehgious ideas
of the Chaldeans, or Sumerians, who originally occupied Baby-
lonia. However, when the Babylonian religion is mentioned,
reference is made to the later faith of the valley, and this re-
sulted from a blending of the Sumerian beliefs and the re-
ligious system brought in by the Semitic invaders.
The original inhabitants of the country, in their attempt
to explain the forces of nature, had conceived that spirits be-
longed to animate as well as inanimate objects, and that these
spirits had power to bless or injure. The rain could refresh
the crops or it might wash them out of the earth; the sun
could cause the grain to germinate or in a day could dry it up
with withering heat. The evil which each spirit was likely
to do so far exceeded the good that gradually these spirits were
thought of as demons. It was a demon which took possession
of a man and made him ill. Famines were brought by the
south-west wind. In short, demons threatened on every hand,
and only a diligent use of charms and frequent incantations
could protect humanity and enable each to live out his days
amidst such imminent dangers.
Now it is evident that there is no trace of our conception
of a god in all this, but the early Sumerians had also their gods
which were likewise personifications of nature, and these were
later adopted by the Babylonian Semites, who also took over
the earlier beliefs about the various spirits. In the course of
perhaps several hundred years from the blending of the two
beliefs, with such changes as growing intelligence brought,
the religion of the Babylonians was evolved.
The Semites who pushed north and founded the state of
Assyria, took with them the religion of the southern kingdom.
In explaining further the religion of the southland, we
must remember its early political situation. Instead of one
united kingdom, it was made up of a number of little states
308 rut WORLD*S PROGRESS.
under leadership of cities. The leading cities had grown up
around the temple of some protecting deity whose favor was
believed to extend over the immediate vicinity. Thus, for ex-
ample, Sin, the Moon-god, was not only the patron deity of
Ur, but of the whole state of which Ur was the capital city.
To exalt its god, a state would reach out to incorporate an-
other. The people thus conquered did not cease to worship
their former deity but now gave homage to the god of their
conquerors as well. When several little states were united,
the greatest of their gods was the god of their strongest city,
since he had clearly demonstrated his power by giving victory
over the rest. In truth, it should be explained that such was
the official god, for without doubt the masses knew little of
political absorption and worshipped the god of their infancy
rather than new gods honored by the state.
In course of various unions, En-lil or Bel became the most
important god in Babylonia and remained so until Babylon
gained supremacy over all other states. Then Marduk, her
ancient god, was given first place.
A brief consideration of the leading Babylonian gods will
help us to gain some insight into these early ideas and concep-
tions. As early as 3500 b. c, En-lil or Bel was worshipped in
Nippur. The very name testifies to its Sumerian origin. Lil
signifies demon, and En-lil was the chief of spirits. In one of
the earliest inscriptions in Sumerian he is mentioned with Anna
and Enki, the gods of heaven and the abyss. These three made
up the original triad and as such they continued throughout the
later period as Bel Anu and Ea. Nippur became a strong
political center and this made Bel principal god of the land until
his powers were transferred to Marduk. Bel's consort, like the
consorts of all Babylonian gods, was but a weak reflection of the
god himself.
Eridu was a seaport. Ea, god of "that which is below,"
was its local deity. He was first considered as god of the earth
but the water was of greater commercial importance and gradu-
ally he grew to be regarded as god of the deep. From merely
a local god, protecting Eridu, he extended his sway over all
waters. In both Larsa and Sippar the sun-god Shamash, known
among the Sumerians as Utu, was honored. No other deity
enjoyed such continued popularity as the "god of day." From
the earliest to the latest period he was hailed as the "god that
SOCIAI. Wlf^ IN MESOPOTAMIA. 309
gives light and life to all things, upon whose favor the prosperity
of the fields and well-being of man depend." As light is
opposed to darkness, so again light reveals wrong doing; for
this reason this god of light became associated with justice.
Sin, the Moon-god, was given prominence over Shamash, so
far as official order of deities was concerned. Some renown
attached to him because he was the father of Ishtar. Indeed
from being the father of many gods and goddesses, he was
remembered as father of this brilliant goddess, greater than
all others. Sin was worshipped more extensively in early times.
Ishtar, supreme goddess, mother of the gods, was first con-
ceived as a mild, sympathetic mother-spirit, a goddess of love
and care. In Assyria, however, she was regarded as goddess
of war and battle, and was associated with Asshur in that con-
nection. Nabu, the wise, all-knowing god, sacred in Borsippa,
was also popular in literature and learning. In addition to being
patron of intelligence and wisdom, he was also patron of agri-
culture. When his favor was given, storehouses were heaped
high with grain ; when his favor was withdrawn, famine afflicted
the land. From the twelfth century B.C. onwards his name
appears in royal names such as Nabo-polasar, Nebuchadnezzar,
Nabo-nidus, and in the ninth century B.C. the worship of this
god only was preached : "Put thy trust in Nebo ; trust not in
another God." The long proper names so contantly found in
both Babylonia and Assyria were always compounded from
several words and had some particular meaning — as, Senna-
cherib, or more correctly Sin-akhi-irib, meaning "Sin has
multiplied brethren ;" Buzur-Asshur — "a stronghold is Asshur ;"
Sargon or Sargina — Sar meaning king and gin, to establish,
"I am the established king."
Anu was the god of the heavens ; Ramman the god of storm,
and both held important places in the myths and stories of the
people. In later times Ea was a deity of wide dominion. Father
of Marduk, he was god of humanity. He gave wisdom, and
as god of water, fountains were sacred to him. Cannes or
Fish-Man was simply a name given him by Greek travellers.
In time he was regarded as god of civilization, and nothing
could have been more natural, for over the waters he protected
came civilization to Chaldea, and progress was facilitated by
navigation. Great works of art were ascribed to him ; likewise
he was god of the smith and of the sculptor.
3IO THE world's progress.
The great bulls were works of his hand. He was probably
made father of Marduk in later years, when Babylon's god
had been given first place in the nation, and the only way to
reconcile all that was believed of Ea was to show that as father,
his wisdom had descended to his son, Marduk.
In addition to these leading deities, there was a host of
minor ones but their enumeration would be useless for our pur-
poses. One tablet in the British museum contained originally
the names of nearly 1,800 gods. They were early local gods,
and as their states were added to the kingdom, they were
included in the temple lists to pacify their worshippers.
The religious faith and worship for any one district was not
complicated. Each little community had its patron deity and
paid scant attention to the numerous gods of temple lists.
In Assyria the political situation had been far different.
No large number of petty states, each with its religious system,
had united to form the kingdom; consequently we miss the
numerous gods found in Babylonia. Asshur was the one
great god of the northern people. Alone he stood, god of all.
When Assyria entered upon her military career, Asshur was
regarded as god of war, and because of repeated victory,
grew very popular in this conception. His standard was car-
ried into battle to encourage the soldiers; knowing that his
mighty power was with them, they could not fail. The stand-
ard of Asshur, one of the earliest ensigns of the battle field,
has its own interest for us. On top of a long pole, guarded
on either side by huge wings, perhaps the wings of the eagle,
a circle enclosed the figure of an archer, shooting an arrow.
Seen afar by faltering troops, the standards of the national
god gave new strength and inspired fresh hope of victory.
The similarity between the religion of the Assyrians and
the Hebrews has frequently been noted. Both nations were
Semitic and hence their inheritances were the same. Their
origin and early home was identical. The Hebrews, in course
of their wanderings and experiences, grew to worship one
God to the exclusion of all others. The Assyrians retained
their warlike disposition, and worshipped one God as greater
than all others, but they allowed other deities to be honored
as well. Both nations with great regularity ascribed all their
victories to the divinity they worshipped — ^nay, more by far.
SOCIAI, LIFS IN MESOPOTAMIA. 3II
they attributed all their slaughters to the same deity. The
Hebrews, during the period when as tribes they struggled
for existence, treated their enemies with great cruelty. This
was done, they insisted, to appease their God, or generally in
furtherance of his direct command. Their brethren, the As-
syrians, proceeded in exactly the same manner, and all their
ruthless deeds were done to gratify Asshur and avenge the
insults done him by revolts against his strength. One divinity
commanded the outrages as much as the other, and they were
but expressions of an early and barbarous development.
Among the masses, the sacrifice was unquestionably that
feature of worship best understood. It seems to have been
an instinct born in man to make offerings to appease the wrath
of a god, and to seek by the same means to win his favor. The
priests acted as mediators between the people and the divinity.
To a priest, the farmer, laborer, and slave as well as the noble
and prince, brought each his offering, and such portions as
were considered sacred were offered upon the altar.
As the Egyptian provided food for the ka of the deceased,
so also the Babylonian provided it for the zi of his dead. It
is possible that the belief in the shadowy ka came originally
from the valley of the Euphrates.
Gods were supposed to visit their shrines at intervals and
so food was placed for them. The masses of the people were
so ignorant that it is entirely probable they regarded the
image of the god as the god himself, and that they thought these
images of clay and stone actually devoured the food they
brought.^ The more enlightened had no such crude notions,
but realized that the god-spirit was something apart from
anything they saw and worshipped. If we substitute the name
of the Hebrew deity in place of the Babylonian god, worship-
pers of Judah might have used some of the hymns of prayer
and praise used in Babylonia: — - —
" The heart of my lord is wroth ; may it be appeased !
O lord, my sins are many, my transgressions are great!
The sin that I sinned I knew not,
The transgression I committed I knew not,
The lord in the wrath of his heart has regarded me,
God in the fierceness of his heart has revealed himself to me.
^See the apocryphal story of Bel and the Dragoa
312 THIS WORI^D'S PROGRESS.
I sought for help and none took my hand;
I wept, and none stood at my side;
I cried aloud, and there was none that heard me.
I am in trouble and hiding; I dare not look up.
To my god, the merciful one, I turn myself, I utter my prayer;
The sins I have sinned turn into a blessing ;
The transgressions I have committed let the wind carry away!
Strip off my manifold wickedness as a garment!
O my god, seven times seven are my transgressions : forgive my
sins!"
Another, written first to Sin of Ur, and later incorporated
into the hymns of the nation :
" Father, long-suffering and full of forgiveness.
Whose hand upholdeth the life of all mankind!
First-born, omnipotent, whose heart is immensity, and there is
none who may fathom it !
In heaven who is supreme ? Thou alone, thou art supreme !
On earth, who is supreme? Thou alone, thou art supreme!
As for thee, thy will is made known in heaven, and the angels
bow their faces.
As for thee, thy will is made known upon earth, and the spirits
below kiss the ground."
Elsewhere we find Ashur appealed to as "lord of the gods,
who has created himself."
Services were many. Each day required its own offerings
and ceremonies. The changes of the moon were watched and
accompanied by peculiar services. Taboos were placed on cer-
tain days and on these no work was permitted.
The priesthood was large. Besides the chief priests, there
were elders, anointers, — who anointed the images of the gods
and the vessels of the temple with sacred oil ; priests who pre-
sided over the oracles and whose function it was to ascertain
auspicious times for war and other prodigious undertakings,
and seers, who interpreted dreams.
Revenues of the temples came from offerings and more
regularly, from the tithe, a tax paid by both king and sub-
jects. In this way, the temples controlled property. Their
lands were usually rented out.
When Babylonia reached her age of greatest prosperity,
the religion of the land had been greatly secularized, and the
SOCIAI. life: in MESOPOTAMIA. 3I3
temples were important for their business significances quite as
much as for their reHgious features. " The temple exerted an
overwhelming financial influence in smaller towns. Only in
certain large cities was it rivalled by a few great firms. Its
financial status was that of the chief, if not the only, great
capitalist. Its political influence was also great. This was
largely enlisted on the side of peace at home and stability in
business." Its great possessions resulted from the daily and
monthly payments, from lands dedicated to the temple by
devout ones, and from careful investment of revenues.
" The temple was also a commercial institution of high
efficiency. Their accumulations of all sorts of raw products
were enormous. The temple let out or advanced all kinds of
raw material, usually on easy terms. To the poor, as a charity,
advances were made in times of a scarcity or personal want,
to their tenants as part of the metayer system of tenure, to
slaves who lived outside its precincts, and to contractors who
took the material on purely commercial terms. The return
was expected in kind, to the full amount of advance, or with
stipulated interest. ...
" The temples did a certain amount of banking business.
By this we mean that they held money on deposit against the
call of the depositor. Whether they charged for safe-keeping
or remunerated themselves by investing the bulk of their capi-
tal, reserving a balance to meet calls, does not appear. . . .
" In certain circumstances the king's officials might bor-
row of the temples. . . . Some kings laid hands on the
treasure of the temple for their own use. Doubtless this was
done under bond to repay. The cases in which we read of
such practices are always represented as a wrong. . . .
" The temple could act in all the capacities of a private
individual or a firm of traders.'"
The religion of Mesopotamia did not require the believer
to preserve his dead, as in Egypt. Cremation was almost al-
ways resorted to, and for this reason we lack the tomb-finds,
so elucidating in Egypt. The body was made ready for burial,
with some food and other necessities, then it was partially
burned, at least, and the remains entombed. The conditions
of the country in Babylonia made cremation almost a necessity.
•Johns: Baby, and Assy. Laws, Contracts and Letters, 211.
314 TH^ world's progress.
While some degree of purity was occasionally reached in
Mesopotamian conceptions of religion, and far-sighted and
high-minded persons lived in both countries, there was much
that was degrading in connection with the worship. All Baby-
lonian classes were grossly superstitious and believed always
in the demons. The incantations used to drive these away
were not only countenanced by the priesthood, but were taught
as a part of the established worship. Demons were of various
kinds and possessed different degrees of power. They lurked
in obscure places, ready to inflict themselves upon unhappy mor-
tals. All diseases, all misfortunes were their doings. A suf-
ferer exclaims:
" They have used all kinds of charms
to entwine me as a rope,
to catch me as in a cage,
to tie me as with cords,
to overpower me as in a net,
to twist me as with a sling,
to tear me as a fabric,
to throw me down as a wall."
To this the conjurer replies:
" But I by command of Marduk, the lord of charms,
by Marduk, the master of bewitchment,
Both the male and female witch
as with ropes I will entwine,
as in a cage I will catch,
as with cords I will tie,
as in a net I will overpower,
as in a sling I will twist,
as a fabric I will tear,
as a wall throw them down."
At this juncture, images of witches were burned by fire,
having been tortured first by these specified actions.
The ritual set forth water as a purification for some be-
witchment.
SOCIAIv U^e IN MESOPOTAMIA. 3I5
" Glittering water, pure water,
Holy water, resplendent water,
The water twice seven times may he bring,
May he make pure, may he make resplendent.
May the evil spirit depart,
May he betake himself outside,
Spirit of heaven, be thou invoked!
Spirit of earth, be thou invoked!
Another remedy was this :
" White wool, which has been spun into thread.
To attach it to his :couch in front and at the top,
Black wool which has been spun into thread
To bind at his left side.'"
In addition to long lists of formulae for driving away the
demons of sickness, and famine and misfortune, a countless
number of omens had to be taken into account if one wished
success to accompany his undertakings. Some of these con-
cerned the movement of heavenly bodies.
" The moon and sun are balanced.
The subjects will be faithful
The king of the land will reign for a long time."
Another brought a sense of danger in its day :
" On the fifteenth day the sun and moon are seen together,
A powerful enemy raises his weapons against the land.
The enemy will smash the great gate of the city;
The star of Anu appears bright —
The enemy will devastate." ^ —
Or this :
" The moon is seen out of season.
Crops will be small.
On the twelfth day the moon is seen together with the sun — •
A strong enemy will devastate the land."
^Jastrow : Babylonian Religion.
3i6 THE world's PROGRKSS.
A numerous list of omens pertained to the doings of ani-
mals. Stray dogs might bring disaster if they entered houses
in unusual ways, and yet it was necessary that they frequent
the streets. By-wayfe that they left were not thought lucky.
The following omens have been translated from old tablets:
" If a yellow dog enters a palace, it is a sign of distress.
If a speckled dog enters a palace, the palace will give peace to
the enemy.
If a dog enters a palace and crouches on the couch, no one
will enjoy that palace in peace.
If a dog enters a temple, the gods will not enlarge the land.
If a raven enters a man's house, that man will secure whatever
he desires."
All kinds of dreams were carefully tabulated, and were
noted from time to time in connection with events in the
dreamers' lives :
" If in a dream a fish appear on a man's head, that man will be
powerful."
" If a mountain appear on a man's head, that man will be without
a rival.'"
While all these omens were not directly connected with
worship, they were consistent with the religious teaching of
the time, and so are perhaps rightly considered here.
The Babylonians were more religious than the Assyrians
and their government was far more bound up in religious
ceremonies. One fact alone bears out this statement: In
Babylonia the king must each year celebrate anew the ceremony
of taking his temporal power from the god Marduk by taking
the hands of the god's image. This service took place on
New Year's day, and no matter what might be the situation
in other parts of the empire, to Babylon the king must come
and observe the ancient custom would he remain possessor of
the kingly crown.
•Jastrow: Babylonian Religion,
SOCIAL UFE IN M^OPOTAMIA. 3I7
n,0 NABO- KU- DU- BI- UTSCB
no HA- BI- VU- XV' DU- UK- BI- U- TSU- UB
The name Nebuchadnezzar in two forms of writing— as found on br ck and in inscriptions.
CHAPTER XVI.
The Laboring Classes.
Both slave and free labor existed In Babylonia, but, as has
been previously said, there was no special prejudice felt to-
wards the slave. He was often of the same nationality as the
owner, was trusted, and often adopted into the family. Pa-
rents sold their children into slavery, and in hard times men
would even sell themselves to obtain food and shelter. On
the other hand, slaves might become free men and might ripe
to positions of high importance in the state. Having been a
slave left no stigma to one who later became free. The slave
might accumulate money and so purchase his freedom; free-
dom might be secured to him because of adoption into a family.
While still in servitude he might appear as a witness or party
in a suit, and his testimony was valued as much as though he
were free. Nevertheless, while enjoying privileges unusual to
one in slavery, he was still but a chattel given as security for a
debt, offered as part of a dowry, or again, his services might
be hired out for a given period, his earnings to go to his owner.
Various measures were taken to protect the slave, as the
Code of Hammurabi shows. Fines were imposed for any
abuses suffered during a period when he was hired out. This
served as a check upon those who otherwise might have caused
him to ovfrwork.
Slaves made up quite a portion of the laborers, both in
Babylonia and- Assyria, although in the latter country less
friendly relations seem to have existed between slave and
owner, for the great mass of Assyrian slaves had been taken
captives in war, and were foreigners, unaccustomed to the ways
of the land, and less devoted, probably, to the interests of those
who owned them.
Few slaves were bought and sold with the land, and these
generally belonged to temple lands. Private farms were
worked by slaves privately owned.
1—22
3i8 THE world's progress.
Free labor was available, but as a consequence of slavery,
wages were low. The grazers were generally free men ; they
received large herds of cattle and flocks of sheep from several
owners, and these they pastured for months together on the
west slope of the Euphrates. Because the herds required con-
stant protection from nomadic tribes of the desert, the grazers
had to be men of responsibility.
The oldest occupation of the Euphrates valley was agri-
culture. The soil yielded heavily and early won tribes away
from their roving state. Taxes were always paid in kind, and
grain was stored for times of scarcity in royal granaries.
For the Babylonian, the year opened in the fall — in Tisri
(September), the month of harvest. When his crops were
harvested, the farmer paid his tax; if the land was farmed out,
the owner paid the tax and the tenant paid his rent. New
contracts for land were made at this time of the year.
The ordinary arrangement between landlord and tenant
seems to have been that he who rented should pay one-third
of the 3'ear's produce for the use of the farm, and that he
should keep all buildings and ditches in repair. This last stipu-
lation was strongly enjoined, and a fine was inflicted did he
fail in this particular.
During the portion of the year when the usual round of
sowing and reaping ceased, the canals and ditches needed at-
tention. The entire prosperity of the soil depended upon the
maintenance of the irrigation system.
" Ploughing, harrowing, sowing, reaping, and threshing
constituted the chief events of the agricultural year. The
winters were not cold, and the Babylonian peasant was conse-
quently not obliged to spend a part of the year indoors shiver-
ing over a fire. In fact fuel was scarce in the country; few
trees were grown in it except the palm, and the fruit of the
palm was too valuable to allow it to be cut down. When the
ordinary occupations of the fafmer had come to an end, he
was expected to look after his farm buildings and fences, to
build walls and clean out the ditches.
" The ditches, indeed, were more important in Babylonia
than in most other parts of the world. Irrigation was as neces-
sary as in Egypt, though for a different reason. The Chal-
dean plain had originally been a marsh, and it required cont^
SOCIAL UFS IN MESOPOTAMIA. 3I9
stant supervision to prevent it from being once more inundated
by the waters and made uninhabitable. The embankments
which hindered the overflow of the Euphrates and Tigris and
kept them within carefully regulated channels, the canals
which carried off the surplus water and distributed it over the
country, needed continual attention. Each year, after the rains
of the winter, the banks had to be strengthened or re-made and
the beds of the canals cleared out. The irrigator, moreover,
was perpetually at work; the rainy season did not last long,
and during the rest of the year the land was dependent on the
water supplied by the rivers and canals. Irrigation, therefore,
formed a large and important part of the farmers' work, and
the bucket of the irrigator must have been constantly swing-
ing."'
Large numbers of sheep were raised in these valleys, and
the manufacture of wool into dress-stuffs, carpets, and tapest-
ries, made Babylonia famous among the nations of her time.
Her rugs and carpets were the pride of her people and large
sums were paid for them. Scenes sculptured in bas-relief
were seen in tapestries which lined the walls of wealthy
homes. Vegetable dyes were used, and gayly colored flowers,
bright hues and tints, made attractive decorations for interiors
against dull back-grounds of brick. A large proportion of the
industrial population was engaged in weaving, dyeing, and
preparing these commodities for shops and other places of sale.
Because of the constantly growing demand for wool, many
were induced to raise sheep and to trade in the raw wool.
Records show that Belshazzar, son of the king and heir to
the Babylonian throne, was a wool-merchant on a large scale,
his commercial interests being, of course, managed by others.
The price of wool varied greatly, being sometimes high,
sometimes low. It cost little in addition to the wages of the
shepherd to pasture flocks west of the river during the greater
part of the year, for pasturage there was free to all. For some
months, to be sure, sheep had to be sheltered and fed inside
enclosures, within or near the city. This was the costly part
of sheep-raising.
When the flocks were driven into town, toll per head was
exacted at the city gate. Lists of the various tolls collected
i Sayce : Baby, and Assy., 88.
320 THE wori^d's progress.
and turned into the general treasury show them altogether to
have been considerable; not only were they collected of all who
passed through the gates but a bridge toll was paid by whoever
passed over the bridge connecting Babylon and Borslppa,
across the river; all ships and sailing crafts, moreover, paid a
toll to pass under the bridge.
Enumerations of the trades of Babylonia have been found ;
these mention the trades of carpenter, smith, metal-worker,
weaver, leather-worker, dyer, potter, brick-maker and vintner.
The carpenter not only raised the beams and scaffolding of
houses, but as well made whatever articles of furniture the
times afforded. The brick-maker made tablets for inscriptions
as well as bricks for building purposes. The brickyards were
always on low land, near the river, where reeds, so useful in
brick-making, were abundant. Building bricks were made in
different sizes — some nearly a foot square by 2^^ inches thick;
others about 15 by 15 and three inches in thickness. Chopped
reeds were frequently mixed in the bricks themselves, and
since the demand for them was constant, they were cultivated
and grown in large areas. In a secluded corner of the brick-
yard, the fine tablets for literary purposes were produced ; and
here too, dishes and vases of pottery were molded and baked.
Thus we see that great activity and divers interests attached to
these yards given over to the manufacture of clay articles.
The leather worker found material in abundance, owing
to the extensive cattle raising. Harnesses, saddles, and shoes,
beautifully decorated, were chief among leather commodities.
The smith excelled in fashioning articles from gold, silver,
copper and bronze. Ordinarily the metal was melted and run
into molds of clay or stone. The customer usually furnished
the ore and paid for the work upon it. Metal workers were
held accountable for the excellence of their work, as is shown
by guaranties found, whereby they promised to pay heavy
fines if during a given term of years, their work should be
found imperfect.
The people of Babylonia never succeeded in mastering the
bas-relief work, so effectively used in Assyrian palaces.
Enamelled tiles took the place of these, and they were either
painted in some design and glazed, or simply tinted. "Quite
as old as the trade of the carver in ivory was that of the porce-
SOCIAI, IvIFE IN MESOPOTAMIA. 321
Iain-maker. The walls of the palaces and temples of Baby-
lonia and Assyria were adorned with glazed and enamelled
tiles on which figures and other designs were drawn in brilliant
colors ; they were then covered with a metallic glaze and fired.
Babylonia, in fact, seems to have been the original home of
the enamelled tile and therefore with the manufacture of
porcelain. It was a land of clay and not of stone, and while
it thus became necessary to ornament the plain mud wall of
the house, the clay brick itself, when painted and protected by
a glaze, was made into the very best and most enduring of
ornaments. The enamelled bricks of Chaldea and Assyria are
among the most beautiful relics of Babylonian civilization that
have survived to us, and those which are now in the Museum
of the Louvre are unsurpassed by the most elaborate produc-
tions of modern skill."
The trade of the vintner was lucrative. Wines were made
from dates and grapes; beer was doubtless made from grain.
It seems to have been the custom to supply laborers with beer
with their daily rations.
Organizations among workmen corresponded to the guilds
of later years. Those who would learn a trade, whether free-
men or slaves, had to serve as apprentices a certain time and
learn the work thoroughly.
Wages were always so low that they amounted to little.
It has been estimated that the average wages of a workman
was about 12s., or $3.00 a year; unskilled laborers were con-
tented if merely supplied with food. In the reign of Cambyses
a butcher is recorded to have been paid 75 cents for a month's
work — freemen had always to compete with slave labor, and
if only the employer furnished food and clothing, he could
command any amount of labor.
Babylonia early exchanged her grain and dates for the
products of other lands. For example, teak-wood and cotton
were brought from Arabia, cedar from Lebanon, marble from
the east, gold from the peninsula of Sinai. Sometimes the raw
materials were made up in Babylonia and returned to the lands
from whence they came together with grain, rugs and cloth
of wool. Because of her geographical position. Babylonia was
able to command an important commercial position, importing
and exporting constantly.
322 THE world's progress.
" The mass of the people in Babylonia were employed in
the two pursuits of commerce and agriculture. The commerce
was both foreign and domestic. Great numbers of the Baby-
lonians were engaged in the manufacture of those fabrics,
particularly carpets and muslins, which Babylonia produced
not only for her own use but also for the consumption of for-
eign lands. The ordinary trades and handicrafts practised in
the East no doubt flourished in the country. A brisk import
and export trade was constantly kept up, and promoted a
healthful activity throughout the entire body politic. Baby-
lonia is called ' a land of traffic ' by Ezekiel, and Babylon ' a
city of merchants.' The monuments show that from the very
earliest times the people of the low country on the borders of
the Persian Gulf were addicted to maritime pursuits and
navigated the gulf freely, if they did not even venture on
the open ocean. . . .
" The products of the various countries of Western Asia
flowed into Babylonia down the courses of the rivers. From
Armenia came wine, gems, emery, and perhaps stone; from
Phoenicia, tin, copper, musical instruments; from Media, silk,
gold and ivory." '
The Proeessions: The Banker.
In ancient times, the money-lender was the banker, and
lending money was foremost in Babylonian professions. Even
members of the royal families were themselves heavy loaners
and drew high rates of interest, although, to be sure, their
business transactions were carried on by agents.
The rate of interest varied greatly, being generally higher
in Assyria. In Babylonia it might be 20%, or again 16%, and
was rarely as low as 10%. Cases are on record in Assyria
where 25% and 33>^% were exacted. As is still customary in
the East, interest was computed monthly, and unless the bor-
rower was well known and trusted, it was paid monthly.
Security for the full amount was always required.
A great firm of Babylon held a position in that country
corresponding to that held by the Rothschilds in England,
loaning to the state as well as to private individuals. Personal
deeds and documents belonging to citizens were stored in
2Rawlinson: Babylonia.
SOCIAI, UfE IN MESOPOTAMIA. 323
the well-protected chambers of this firm as they are today
kept in safety boxes in bank vaults. Banking firms con-
tinued for generations, and immense numbers of wills, deeds
of sale, business contracts, leases, tax certificates, loans and
marriage agreements accumulated within their chambers.
Scribes.
While each one pleaded his own case ordinarily, in the
courts of Babylonia, pleas were frequently thrown into form
beforehand by a scribe. These scribes performed duties
discharged in later times by attorneys at law, as well as those
which would of necessity fall to their share. In Babylonia
they acted as librarians, authors and publishers, multiplying
copies of books and selling them. In Assyria, where the art
of reading and writing was not so generally known, they
acted as private clerks and secretaries to a wide extent.
Medicine.
We have noted early in our study that medicine had but a
small part in Babylonian life. Charms, magic and incanta-
tions in a large measure took its place. However, with
acquaintance with Eg>'pt, came an impulse to learn of a
science which occupied a more important position in the valley
of the Nile. While physicians came into prominence in later
years, they were never wholly depended upon. The doctor
was called to act in unison with the magician and conjurer
unless, as was often the case, he himself united the two arts
of healing. Herodotus and other travellers have testified to
cases similar to the following : " Pressing forward and peep-
ing over tlie heads of the people, we see a man stretched
upon a mattress, and apparently just about to die. A few
weeping friends kneel at his side, and we learn that he has
been brought from his home, and laid down in the public
market place, in the vain hope that some one may propose
a remedy which will save his life. This custom, so strange
to us, is common in Babylon, they say. When all else has
failed, when doctors and sorcerers have done their best, fhe
sick person is transported to the open square, and advice is
asked from the crowd which is sure to gather.
" Today, as ever, each has a different remedy to propose,
324 THE world's progress.
though all are agreed as to the cause of illness. A demon
possesses the man, of that there is no question. * Come away,
little one I * cries an old woman, drawing back her grandson.
* Go not too near, lest the evil spirit leave the man, and seize
upon thee. Often have I seen it. Bel be praised that I
have his image ! ' And she draws forth a little clay image
of Bel, and hangs it carefully on the neck of her grandson.
* Hast thou tried the wool of a young sheep ? * asks a woman
of the sick man's wife. * Let a sorcerer tie seven knots in
it, on seven moonlight nights. Tie the strands around thy
husband's neck, around his limbs, around his head. So shall
his soul not leave his body.'
" * Try the recipe of Asshurbanipal the Assyrian,* cries an-
other. * It is well known and never fails. Six different
kinds of wood, a bit of snake skin, some wine, and a piece
of ox flesh. ;Make a paste, and cause the sick man to swal-
low it."
" A man hurries up with a handful of clay, and molds a
little figure which he displays as the image of the sick man.
We cannot see the resemblance, but the crowd presses for-
ward and watches his motions with eager curiosity. He calls
for a cup of wine, pours part of it over the image, and after
drinking the rest, mutters an incantation. All in vain, while
he is yet speaking, the family of the sick man raises a chorus
of wails, in which the crowd joins. The man is dead; no
charm can avail him more."'
The Soldier.
We cannot speak of the vocation of the soldier as we
speak of the regular professions of men, but any account of
Assyria which failed to give some idea of the army, the
ver\' support and strength of that great empire, would be in-
complete.
At first, as in Babylonia, the soldiers when needed were
recruited from peasants in the field. When the war was over,
they would return to their usual tasks. However, Assyria
with her many conquests felt the need of trained soldiers,
proficient in military tactics. To the standing army which
grew into a strong body, warriors taken captive in other lands
'This reminds one of the snails, etc., that were crushed and brewed in
small beer for rickets in New England. See Alice Morse Earlc, "Customs
and Fashions in Old New Ei^land."
-Arnold: Stories of Ancient Peoples, 123.
SOCIAI, LIFE IN MESOPOTAMIA. 325
were added. In course of a few generations a formidable
army was thus brought into being, and the calling of a soldier
became a r^ular profession. Men were required to give evi-
dences of skill before they could take commands of Foments
and even before they could command a company of ten. Mas-
pero has made an extended study of military'- affairs in Assyria
and we can do no better than follow the results he has reached
in his investigation:
" The Ass>Tian army is the best organized war imchine
that the world has yet seen,* It is superiority of weapons,
not any superiority in courage and discipline, that has secured
to the Nine\-ite kings since Sargon the priority over the
Pharaohs of the Delta, of Thebes and Meroe. Whilst the
Egyptians, as a rule, still fight without any protection, except
the shield, the Assyrians are, so to speak, clothed in iron
from head to foot. Their hea\'y infantry is composed of
spearmen and archers, wearing a conical cap ornamented with
two side pieces which protect the ears, a leather shirt covered
with overlapping metal scales which protects the chest and
the upper part of the arms, close fitting breeches, and boots
laced in front The spearmen carry spears six feet long, with
an iron or bronze head, a short sword passed through their
belt, and an immense metal shidd, sometimes round and con-
vex, sometimes rounded at the top and square at the bottom.
The archers have no shields; they replace the spear by a
bow and quiver, which hang over their back. Their light
infantry also includes some spearmen, but they wear a helmet
with a curved crest, and are pro\'ided with a small round
wicker-work shield- The archers have no breastplate, and
are associated either with slingers or with soldiers armed
with clubs and double-edged axes.
" The spearmen and archers of the line are usually of
Ass>Tian origin or levied in the territories that have been
subject to Ass\-ria for a long time; the other troops are often
recruited amongst tributary nations, and th^ wear their
national costumes. They are arranged in companies, and
manceu^Te with a regularity which foreigners themselves
admire, . . . They march with extraordinary rapidity,
leaving no stragglers or lame men behind them as they go,
«The narrative is s^ back in the dajs of .Assyrian Empire,
326 thS wqrIvD's progress.
and their generals are not afraid to impose fatigues upon them
to which the soldiers of other lands would quickly succumb.
They either ford the rivers or swim across them upon inflated
skins. In wooded countries, each company sends forward
a certain number of pioneers, who fell the trees and clear a
path.
" The cavalry are divided into two corps, the chariot
soldiers and the regular cavalry. The Assyrian war-chariot
is much heavier and more massive than the Egyptian. . . .
Like the Egyptian chariots, the Assyrians always charge in
a regular line, and there are few troops in the world that
can resist their first shock. When a battalion of the enemy
sees them coming, rapid and light, their darts pointed, their
bows strung, they usually disband immediately after the first
volley of arrows, and run away. The line is then broken,
and the chariots disperse over the plain, crushing the fugitives
beneath their wheels, and trampling them under their horses'
feet. . . ,
" Formerly the chariots were very numerous in the Assy-
rian armies. They are less used at the present day, but tradi-
tion gives them the post of honour and the king or the chief
general always reserves for himself the privilege of leading
them into the fight. It is the distinguished branch of the ser-
vice, the one in which the princes and great nobles prefer tc
serve, and its weight often decides the fate of the battle.
" Yet now the cavalry commences to rival it, if not m
numbers, at jeast in importance. . . . The horse was at
first ridden bareback; now it is covered with one cloth, or
with a complete caparison similar to that of the chariot horses.
All the cavalry wear helmets and cuirasses like the infantry
of the line, but they have no shields; they replace the floating
petticoat by cotton drawers. One-half of them carries the
sword and lance, the other half is armed with a bow and
sword.
The lance is eight or nine feet long, the bow is shorter
than the bow used by the infantry, and the arrows are scarcely
three feet long. Formerly each mounted archer was accom-
panied by a servant, mounted like himself, who led his horse
during the battle so as to leave both his hands free. The art
of riding has made such progress during the last few years
SOCIAL UFE IN MESOPOTAMIA,
3*7
that the servant has become useless, and has disappeared from
the armies. Now lancers and bowmen are all trained to guide
their steed by the pressure of the knees, and they may be seen
galloping with flying reins, shooting their arrows as they go,
or else halting suddenly, they quietly discharge the arrow,
then turn and gallop off again. . . .
" The proportion of the different services is always about
the same. There are, on an average, one hundred foot soldiers
to every ten cavalry and every single chariot; the infantry is
really the queen of the Assyrian battles." '
* Maspero: Ancient Egypt and Assyria, 320.
THRESHOLD — SLAB IN ASSHURBANIPAL'S PALACE.
328 THB wori^d's progress.
CHAPTER XVII.
The: Medes.
The Medes belonged to the Indo-European branch of the
Aryan race. It is supposed that they came into Europe from
the far east, and thence migrated to Asia, some time previous
to 1000 B. c. They settled a mountainous tract to the east
of Assyria, occupying a district rather larger than Babylonia
and Assyria together. Because of its rugged mountains, nar-
row passes, and inclement winter weather, their country was
easily defended against invaders. In the days of Assyrian
dominance, the people of Media maintained uniform inde-
pendence, notwithstanding the fact that military kings were
annexing territories far and near with almost irresistible force.
And so today, those who live in this district, remain compara-
tively free from the government which seeks to rule them.
For the history of this ancient nation we are thrown al-
most wholly upon the writings of Herodotus, Xenophon and
other Greek travellers, for as yet no antiquarian has attempted
to recover Median past from mounds of buried ruins. In-
deed the country has never been left desolate like Babylonia,
but its cities fell to the share of others, and later generations,
finding material for new buildings in the structures of their
predecessors, have left no mounds to allure the historian and
archaeologist. Since rich finds in other lands have in recent
years thrown unexpected light upon the past, it has been
surmised that beneath the present cities, in this land of ancient
Media, might be recovered monuments of her early life. So
far, however, other fields have proven more inviting to the
explorer and the excavator.
In spite of the faults of credulence and exaggeration so
characteristic of Herodotus, we must nevertheless turn to his
writings and to those of Xenophon for Median history.
We have noted that during the eighth century, Assyria
made a raid into Media. The independence of the people
was not disturbed however. This verifies the statement of
Herodotus that the Medians made good soldiers, hardy and
THE STORY OF THE) MEDES. 329
well able to defend their land. They were trained to a life
of physical activity, inured to the hardships of a rigorous
climate. Charging on horseback at full speed, they made
a formidable defense.
In their early conflicts they seem to have displayed ex-
cessive cruelty in war, showing no mercy to helpless women
or innocent children. As for plunder, they cared little for
it, and Isaiah refers to them as " the Medes who care not
for silver, and as for gold, have no delight in it."^
By frequent plundering raids into their territory, the
Assyrians incurred the lasting hatred of the Medes, who,
urged on by a spirit of revenge, united in 606 B. c. under a
Median prince to aid the king of Babylonia against the Assy-
rian monarch. Having defeated the army, the Medes pur-
sued, and shut the Assyrian force within the walls of Nineveh.
Thereupon they made an assault upon the defenses of the
city and carried the day. The capital of Assyria and all the
wealthy cities of the realm were overrun, plundered and
burned, while the surviving inhabitants were so widely
scattered that we hear no more about them.
Before this the Medes had cared little for luxury and
ease, although they always delighted in a certain barbaric
splendor. With the vast treasure of Nineveh their king now
built a palace of extensive proportions. Its halls and pillars
were of woods, its courts wide and the whole structure mag-
nificent. No wood was left visible, all being concealed by a
coating of silver tiles. Herodotus wrote thus of the palace
walls :
" The walls enclose the palace, rising in circles, one within
the other. The plan of the place is that each of the walls
should out-top the one beyond it by the battlements. The
nature of the ground, which is a gentle slope, favors this
arrangement in some degree, but it was mainly effected by
art. The number of the circles is seven, the royal palace and
the treasuries standing within the last. Of the outer wall,
the battlements are white; of the next, black; of the third,
scarlet; of the fourth, blue; of the fifth, orange; all these are
covered with paint. The last, two have their battlements
coated respectively with silver and gold."
We may gain some idea of the wealth represented by this
'Isa. 13, 17. The chapter is late, and, as Duhm says, the fact that the
redactor ascribed it to Isaiah is instructive as regards the want of critical
abiHty of the diaskenasts. Craig.
330 THE world's PROGRKSS.
building when we learn that the king of Persia carried away
the greater portion of the gold and silver decorations for his
palace; Alexander the Great removed the silver tiling from
the roof, and some seventy years later another conqueror
found about $5,000,000 worth of gold and silver plating
overlooked by his predecessors. While no former palace may
have exceeded this in actual outlay of wealth, others may
have been more artistic, for the Medes reached no special
architectural skill.
After the Assyrian conquest, the Median nation soon be-
came weak and degenerate. The people affected a life of
luxury and idleness. The king lived amidst pomp and osten-
tatious seclusion; his courtiers and nobles gave themselves up
to immoderate indulgences and amusements. While under
Cyaxares and his father, Media had become a power in Asia,
upon the death of this king, his son Astyages succeeded to
the throne. He had grown up during the later years of
ease and had no greater ambition than to rule the kingdom
left him, no more animating impulses than to pass his days
amid the ceremony and studied formality of the Median court.
Astyages seems to have planned neither political activity nor
personal diversion. He never joined in the hunts which were
popular with his courtiers. Rather, he spent his leisure with
such entertainment as his palace afforded and for his adminis-
tration, depended wholly upon the reports of his officials.
Such was Media when a Persian king, realizing the real situa-
tion, led an army against the country. In connection with
our study of Persia we shall come again to the story of this
conquest.
Polygamy was always allowed by the code of Median
laws and morals, while women seem to have been treated
with a certain chivalrous attention and deference. The civil-
ization of the land was similar to that of Persia, which nation,
it is supposed, sprang originally from the same stock. No
greater difference existed betwen the two peoples than might
be found between two modern Teutonic nations.
Education and learning was not valued in either country.
Boys were taught to ride, to hunt, to shoot, and to become
proficient in out of door sports rather than the arts of reading
and writing.
ths story of the medes.
331
The religion was akin to that of Persia, and the faith of
the Persians was singularly pure. They like the Hebrews,
worshipped one God. No degrading ceremonies and teach-
ings attached to their forms of worship, as. was the case in
Egypt and Babylonia. The most ancient writings of the
Zenda- Vesta appear to embody the faith of the Medes, and
these will be considered in connection with the religion of
Persia.
In conclusion, it may be said that the Medes were neither
an inventive nor an ingenious people, nor did they develop
a great civilization, culture, or literature. Indeed we are
forced to the conclusion of Rawlinson: they scarcely con-
tributed an idea or invention to the great store of knowledge
transmitted by the past to the modern world.
RUINS OF PERSEPOLIS.
332 THE WORU>'S PROGRESS.
CHAPTER XVIII.
Persia Before the Age oe Cyrus.
The origin and early history of both Medes and Persians
were similar. When first the Persians are mentioned in
Assyrian annals, they had migrated to the region east of
Assyria, inhabiting an indefinite district which later became
part of the Median state. At this time — about the ninth
century before the Christian era — they were not united under
one king, but each clan followed the leadership of a chosen
chieftain. As a result of an Assyrian attack, more than
twenty of these chiefs brought tribute and acknowledged the
supremacy of the great king.
Nothing of importance is again heard of them until shortly
before the fall of the Assyrian capital. They were then united
into a kingdom, serving one ruler, and living in what has
been called " Persia Proper," to distinguish the original state
from the wide empire which was brought at length under
Persian rule. While free to manage their internal affairs,
they paid tribute to Media, now a vigorous and aggressive
nation. It is plain then, that previous to the fall of Nineveh,
fhe Persian state had taken no part in Asiatic affairs, and
furthermore, was not yet free and independent. However, in
less than one hundred years her people had gained control
over the entire western portion of Asia, extending their rule
from the Indus to the valley of the Nile, while only the little
Greek nation held out against them on the west.
Before entering upon a study of this rapid imperial ex-
pansion, it would be well for us to get some general impres-
sions of the comparatively small territory in which the various
Persian tribes became welded into a united people, and of
the conditions in the original kingdom wherein the principles
which were to temporarily dominate the ancient world were
developed.
Persia Proper consisted of an area of about 450 miles in
length, and averaging 250 miles in width. It might have
been roughly bounded on the south and west by the gulf which
THE STORY O^ The PERSIANS. 333
came to bear its name, while a desert reached off to the east
and north, save where Persian territory touched upon the
Median kingdom. A narrow strip of arid land lay between
the gulf and a mountain range, making up perhaps one eighth
of the entire area. The climate here is hot and dry, the soil
marshy, producing little growth of any sort. The district
east of this range was irregularly divided into highlands and
valleys, lofty rocks and winding chasms. Wherever water
was available, vegetation was luxuriant, making the wild
scenery fantastic and attractive. Generally water was scarce,
and most of the year the land lay parched and brown,
" The region east of the range is of varied character. In
places richly fertile, picturesque, and romantic almost beyond
imagination, with lovely wooded dells, green mountain-sides,
and broad plains suited for the production of almost any crops,
it has yet on the whole a predominant character of sterility
and barrenness, especially towards its more northern and east-
ern portions. The supply of water is everywhere scanty.
Scarcely any of the streams are strong enough to reach the
sea. After short courses they are either absorbed by the sand
or end in small salt lakes, from which the superfluous water
is evaporated. Much of the country is absolutely without
streams, and would be uninhabitable were it not for the sub-
terranean channels of spring-water.
" The most remarkable feature of the country consists in
the extraordinary gorges which pierce the great mountain-
chain, and render possible the establishment of routes across
that tremendous barrier. Scarped rocks rise almost perpen-
dicularly on either side of the mountain streams, which descend
rapidly with frequent cascades and falls. Along the slight
irregularities of these rocks the roads are carried in zigzags,
often crossing the streams from side to side by bridges of a
single arch, which are thrown over profound chasms where
the waters chafe and roar many hundred feet below. The
roads have for the most part been artificially cut in the sides
of the precipices, which rise from the streams sometimes to
the height of 2,000 feet. Thus the country towards the edge
of the plateau is peculiarly safe from attack, being defended
on the north and east by vast deserts, and on the south by a
mountain barrier of unusual strength and difficulty.
1—23
334 THE WORLD'S PROGRESS.
" It is in these regions, which combine facility of defence
with pleasantness of climate, that the principal cities of the
district have at all times been placed." *
It appears that nearly one-half of the kingdom was prac-
tically unsuited for habitation, being dry and producing little
to sustain life. In these early times only two or three cities
existed, small villages making up the remaining social centers,
while peasants farmed limited portions of the outlying
country where the water supply sufficed to maintain crops.
Various fruits abounded in the mountainous regions.
Peaches were native to the soil. Grapes grew in profusion,
and corn and vegetables were plentiful. Along the coast fish
might be found in large quantities and constituted a staple
article of food throughout the land. The natural conditions
were not sufficiently favorable to allow heavy yields of grain
or to make agriculture foremost among the nation's activities.
The Persians were active, vivacious people, lacking wholly
the repose and dignified calm so characteristic of the English,
for example. They concealed neither joy nor sorrow, and
were immoderate in their expressions of both.
Learning and education were given little attention. It
has become a trite and well-known saying that " Persian boys
were taught to ride, to shoot, and to speak the truth." The
religion of the people placed truth first among the virtues.
Their steadfast fidelity to a promise excited wonderment
among the nations. Physical, rather than mental, develop-
ment was sought, and while in the nation's later life the
people gave themselves up to indolence, passing the hours with
personal adornment and feasting, these pastimes did not char-
acterize their early years.
Like the Medes, Persian nobles had several wives, and
polygamy was the rule rather than the exception. Women
were kept in well-nigh complete seclusion, and no mention is
made of them, nor are they seen in pictures adorning the
palaces.
The attitude assumed toward the sovereign influenced the
very character of the people. " The Persian king held the
same rank and position in the eyes of his subjects which the
great monarch of Western Asia, whoever he might be, had
*Rawlin8on; Persia.
TH:e STORY OF THE PERSIANS. 335
always occupied from time immemorial. He was the lord
and master, absolute disposer of their lives, liberties, and
property ; the sole fountain of law and right, incapable himself
of doing wrong, irresponsible, irresistible — a sort of God on
earth; one whose favor was happiness, at whose frown men
trembled, before whom all bowed themselves down with the
lowest and humblest obeisance.
" The feeling of the Persian towards his king is one of
which moderns can with difficulty form a conception. In Persia
the monarch was so much the State, that patriotism itself was,
as it were, swallowed up in loyalty ; and an unquestioning sub-
mission, not only to the deliberate will, but to the merest
caprice of the sovereign, was, by habit and education, so in-
grained into the nature of the people that a contrary spirit
scarcely ever manifested itself. In war the safety of the
sovereign was the first thought, and the principal care of all.
If the king suffered, all was lost; if the king escaped, the
greatest calamities seemed light and could be endured with
patience. The same cheerful submission characterized times
of peace. It was here that their loyalty became a defect rather
than a virtue. The voice of remonstrance, of rebuke, of warn-
ing, was unheard at Court. Tyranny was allowed to indulge
unchecked in the wildest caprices and extravagances. The
father, whose innocent son was shot before his eyes by the
king in pure wantonness, instead of raising an indignant pro-
test against the crime, felicitated him upon the excellence of
his archery. Thus a tone of servility was engendered which,
sapping self-respect, tended fatally to lower and corrupt the
entire character of the people." *
Such were the tendencies of the embryo state which under
the leadership of a great ruler was soon to burst into sudden
and brilliant flower, absorbing in a single campaign nations
which had never before been united.
Cyrus the Great and the Persian Empire.
In ages when monarchs were absolute in the foremost
countries of the world, the personal ability of the king was
a matter of far greater concern than we today realize. In
modern times, political and social changes have had their be-
2 Rawlinson : PersiJ*.-
336 The world's progriiss.
ginnings in the conditions and desires of the people. In the
remote years we are now studying, the people were less con-
sidered, and their wishes seldom heard. The personal char-
acter of the king determined the policy of the ancient state.
We have already seen how the welfare — the very fate of
Egypt, Babylonia and Assyria depended upon their rulers.
Even more pronounced was this in Persia, where subjects,
including nobles and princes, acted in unthinking submission
to a degree unknown in other lands.
In taking up the career of Cyrus the Great we are largely
dependent upon the writings of Herodotus and Xenophon.
Of Herodotus we have learned something, and concerning
Xenophon we may note that besides being a writer and a
traveller, he was also an experienced and able general.
Herodotus lived some fifty years after the death of Cyrus,
and Xenophon was thirty years younger than Herodotus.
Both Greeks wrote at length of the great Persian King.
When Astyages ascended the throne of Media, Persia was
a mere tribute-paying kingdom, insignificant not only in politi-
cal strength, but in social life, wealth, and culture. It is sup-
posed that Cyrus was sent to the Median court as a hostage
from a tribute land. His father ruled in Persia, and we are
told that he was greatly impressed as a boy by the difference
between the two countries. The subjects over whom his
father ruled were many of them soldiers whose days were
spent with training and physical exercise. They ate and drank
moderately, and while they lacked the culture and refinement
of the northern kingdom, they were just coming into the
strength and vigour which the Medians lost upon their con-
quest of Assyria and subsequent abundance of wealth.
Tradition pictures the youth clinging to the simple habits
of his early life, and caring little for the pomp and ceremony
around him. He delighted in riding and liked the hunt best
of all amusements, while he shortly became the companion
of Astyages during the king's leisure hours, bringing refresh-
ing life and boyish candor into a degenerate court.
Some years later Cyrus returned home and, shortly after,
a faction of the Medes who had become devoted to the Persian
prince and felt dissatisfied with the tyranny of their king,
informed Cyrus that if he would bring an army against the
TH^ story 0^ THE PERSIANS. 337
Medes, they would cause the Median forces to desert to him.
Another account says that Cyrus himself planned the conquest
while at the Median court, and having feasted his attendants
and led them to drink heavily, escaped to Persia, where he
soon persuaded his father to march against the Medes. In
either case, it would seem that the prince had learned the true
condition of degenerated Media, and determined to free his
own land from the hated tribute service — establishing its
independence.
In the battle which was waged against the two people,
Astyages was taken captive, and when the majority of the
soldiers went over to the Persian side, the remaining soldiers
fled. Cyrus allowed Astyages to retain his own personal
attendants, and permitted him to live in a style befitting his
recent position. Under guard of Persian soldiers, he was free
to go about at will.
It is probable that Cyrus had at first no greater ambition
than to free Persia from tribute imposed by Media, but the
desire for conquest once awakened never ceases while lands
remain unwon. In conquering Media, all territories of
Assyria fell to Cyrus' portion. The Medes had held lands to
the river Halys on the northwest. Beyond this boundary
stream the empire of Lydia had been growing under the rule
of Croesus.
Croesus has become proverbial for his wealth. As he ex-
tended the boundaries of Lydia, he grew wealthier still,
until his resources exceeded all estimate. Having lost a
favorite son) he lived in seclusion until a sense of approaching
danger roused him to defend his kingdom. The river Halys
was a narrow stream — too small by far to prove a lasting
barrier against an aggressive nation. To spare his land the
ravages of war, Croesus determined to invade the land of his
rival. He thought best to consult the oracle at Delphi before
entering upon such a serious campaign. Having sent costly
presents to Delphi, Croesus inquired whether or not it would
be safe for him to proceed against Persia. The reply was
that if Croesus crossed the Halys and carried war into Persia,
a mighty kingdom would be overthrown, and that he would
do well to form an alliance with the strongest Greek state.
Regarding the answer as favorable, he sent word to Sparta
338 TH^ worIvD's progress.
that, since he was advised by the Delphian oracle to seek the
strongest Greek state as an ally, he solicitated their assistance.
These Spartans were unlike any soldiers we have yet met;
they fought for glory, not for plunder. They were glad, of
course, to be considered the strongest Grecian state, and sent
the assistance asked. With such re-enforcements, Croesus
crossed the Halys and met Cyrus who had known of thq
Lydian movement and was ready for an attack. The battle
was fought near Pterie; both sides lost heavily, and Croesua
thought Cyrus was too crippled to longer advance, so he him-
self returned to Sardis, his capital, to make plans for a new
campaign the following year. Cyrus waited until the Lydian
troops were largely disbanded, and then suddenly appeared
before Sardis. Consternation swept over the Lydians, but
they trusted to their cavalry which was numerous and well
disciplined. Cyrus had also taken the Lydian cavalry into
account, and had ordered his camels which carried the equip-
ment of war, to face the horse, and if possible, to put them
to flight. In the battle fought such was the result — the horses
turned in confusion upon the charge of the camels, and the
Lydian army withdrew into Sardis to undergo a siege. They
expected to win in the long run, for they had sufficient stores
of all kinds, and they hoped that outside aid would come
sooner or later. Cyrus understood the danger of delay, and
determined to carry the city by assault. By scaling a nearly
perpendicular embankment, entrance to Sardis was gained,
and Croesus fell into the hands of the great Persian conqueror.
He was given considerate treatment. Few cruelties disfigure
the pages of Persian history, and never were severe
punishments meted out wholesale to captives in war. Those
who betrayed confidence were harshly dealt with, and rebels
seldom escaped, but the Persians were generally fair-minded.
Cyrus was uniformly mild and generous, lacking the inordi-
nate pride of most Oriental monarchs, treating his subjects
with kindness. Croesus became one of his trusted companions,
and accompanied him upon his later campaigns. The story
of the funeral pyre is probably an invention of the Greeks,
or, if it had any foundation whatever, it may be that Croesus
requested such an honorable end in preference to swearing
allegiance to an unknown conqueror.
THS story of THK PERSIANS. 339
When measures had been taken for the government of
Lydia, attention turned to Babylonia. There, as we have seen,
the crown was worn by a king who was more interested in the
temples of the gods than in the immediate welfare of his nation.
His son Belshazzar made some defense outside the capital, but
a faction within the city, out of sympathy with the existing
government, allowed the Persians to take possession. Cyrus
now allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem and there to
rebuild their temple and to make their homes in the land of
their fathers. For this reason the Hebrews had only words
of praise for Cyrus. To the number of 49,697, with their
property and possessions, they set upon their long march — a
peaceful band which encountered no opposition throughout its
course. The event stands unparalleled in history.
Had Cyrus lived, he would doubtless have added Egypt
to his empire. This was left for his son to accomplish. The
great king fell fighting for territories in the north.
In conclusion, it may be said that Cyrus is the first great
conqueror we have so far met who was kind and humane.
His policy towards the conquered stands out in marked relief
to the butcheries and punishments which characterized Assyria.
Notwithstanding, all charges of selfish motives which have
belonged to those who have sought to become world-conquer-
ors, attach to Cyrus. Urged on by personal vanity and hope
of becoming supreme, he considered only the final issue and
allowed his ambition to triumph over his nobler nature. Some
years later Alexander emulated his example, and one hundred
years ago Napoleon undertook the same gigantic task — greater
in his day — of building up a world-empire. The motives
prompting all three were the same, and in each case the
empires, so quickly brought into being, vanished as quickly
as they -qrose.
340 THE world's progress.
CHAPTER XIX.
War with Greece.
Upon the death of Cyrus, in 529 b. c, his son Cambyses
succeeded to the throne, while a younger brother Smerdis,
was left to supervise certain provinces, according to his
father's wishes. The conquest of Egypt had been planned
by Cyrus and would undoubtedly have been undertaken by
him had he lived. Cambyses at once began preparations to
this end and these occupied some considerable period.
This young prince who had just come into absolute power,
apparently inherited all his father's failings and few of his
virtues. He had never learned to control himself and thai
omened ill for those who became his subjects. His jealousy,
suspicion, cruelty, and arrogant pride contrasted strikingly
with the generous, kindly temperament of Cyrus. Before set-
ting out for Egypt, he had his brother secretly murdered. No
rumor of this crime reached his subjects, however.
Egypt at this time was not able to defend herself against
an army that had become experienced and confident under the
command of Cyrus; consequently, the country fell rapidly
into the hands of the new Persian king. Far from showing
the leniency of his father toward the vanquished, he marked
his victories with needless cruelty.
The two great powers of Africa besides Egypt were the
states of Ethiopia in the south, and Carthage in the northwest.
Of the former we learned something in The Story of Egypt;
of the latter we shall learn later on. Suffice it to say
here that the Carthaginians were colonists of the Phoenicians,
and, like them, were traders whose commerce penetrated to all
lands washed by the Mediterranean Sea.
When Egypt lay at his feet, Cambyses resolved to make
himself supreme in the whole continent of Africa — only the
northern portion of the continent was then known. Accord-
ingly, he directed troops to advance against these two powers
which he thought alone worthy of his notice. Now Carthage
could only be taken by sea, and the king was limited to
THE STORY OF THE PERSIANS. 341
Phoenician vessels, manned by Phoenician sailors. These men
promptly refused to make war on their own colony, whose
interests were so closely interwoven with those of their
country. Their stand must have been united and firm, for
Cambyses found himself obliged to abandon his project. The
expedition to the south was disheartening. The Persian
soldiers were unused to the hot sands and intense sun of
Nubia and great loss and discouragement overtook the army.
Those who withstood the heat were too exhausted by the
march to accomplish anything. The king remained in Egypt.
He was constantly haunted by his crime against his brother.
He realized his unpopularity with his subjects, and feared
that disaster would at any time overtake him. His fears were
shortly reflected in his soldiers, who having learned that they
were no longer led by one who could bring victory in the face
of opposing obstacles, lost heart and fought indifferently.
Herodotus wrote at length concerning the conduct of Cam-
byses in Egypt and his stories were long credited. Tales were
told of Cambyses' profaning Egyptian temples, desecrating
the tombs of the dead, stabbing the apis-bull with his own
sword, outraging the priests and inflicting such injury upon the
nobles as only the madness which they attribute to him, could
explain. In recent years these statements have been modified
by investigation. An Egyptologist of first rank claims that
the tale regarding the apis-bull was not well founded. Un-
questionably Cambyses was brutal in his treatment of a mild
and gentle people, and he may have easily incurred the wrath
of the priesthood by his contempt for their religion, certain
features of which he regarded as mere folly. It is also prob-
able that his deeds have been greatly exaggerated by those
who had cause to hate him for his interference with a land
to which he had no just claim. Instead of being insane, he
no doubt displayed his ungovernable temper and in moments
of rage, gave orders which he would gladly have recalled in
another mood.
While Cambyses loitered in Egypt, a report spread through
the empire that Smerdis had been crowned, and that Cambyses
need no longer be regarded as king. One of the Magians, a
priesthood of Persia which represented a more material form
of worship than the teachings of Zoroaster allowed, had
342 The world's progress.
attempted to usurp the throne in Cambyses' absence. The
real king, feehng depressed with his partial victory, doubting
the fidelity of his army, confessed the murder of his brother
to his ministers. Having thus disclosed the presumption of
the pretender, Cambyses committed suicide.
Darius, a prince of the house of Cyrus, was chosen to
succeed. This was a choice likely to prove acceptable to the
people, for he was the only legitimate heir to the throne.
Herodotus explained with all gravity that the counsellors of
state, of whose number Darius was one, agreed to determine
the succession after this fashion : they would each go on horse-
back at sunrise to the city gate, and he whose horse neighed
first should be proclaimed king!
The Magian was Killed. ~
When the people finally learned the truth and realized
how great a deception had been practised, they turned against
his priesthood and instigated a general massacre. The wor-
ship they had established was cast aside and the purer faith
of ancient Persia was restored. The pretender had compelled
the Jews to cease labor on the new temple they were building
in Jerusalem. Darius gave them permission to continue. So
similar were the religions of the Hebrews and Persians, that
there could be no friction between the two nations on that
ground in an age when nearly all religions were polytheistic.
Darius was long occupied with internal disturbances.
Revolts were put down with severity. When the govern-
ment of the empire was firmly established, it was superior to
any before kno\vn in Asia. The whole empire was divided
into satrapies, or provinces — each under a resident governor;
these governors made frequent reports to the capital and the
opportunity for revolts was slight.
Internal concerns thus settled, Darius turned to conquest.
He conducted a campaign in the east, pushing Persia's pos-
sessions to the banks of the Indus.
It was natural that the king should have cast longing eyes
westward, toward the beautiful isles and states of Greece.
Long before the age of Cyrus, Greek colonists had settled in
Asia Minor. They had fallen to the share of Persia when
Lydia was conquered, and Darius had organized their local
The; story of ths pe^rsians. 343
government so completely that the freedom-loving Greeks
were oppressed by it and in 500 b. c. revolted. These Greek
cities appealed to Athens for aid in their struggle for liberty.
A few soldiers were sent, and with such aid they displaced
the Persian government and destroyed Sardis. Darius sent
an army to put down the revolt, and the city which had led
the struggle was destroyed. The king of Persia now
determined to punish Athens for having given help to the
revolting Greek cities of Asia Minor. Accordingly, he fitted
out an expedition to conquer Greece. The naval forces were
wrecked in a storm and the land forces were routed by hostile
tribes en route. A second expedition was prepared, more
numerous and better equipped than the first. Before dis-
patching it, however, Darius sent heralds to the various Greek
states to inquire if they would submit peacefully. They
replied with great scorn. In 490 b. c. the Persian king sent
300,000 soldiers to conquer Greece. The battle of Marathon
was fought, and owing to the skill of Miltiades, the Greeks
won. Four years later Darius died and Xerxes ruled in his
stead. To him was left the duty of wiping out the inglorious
defeat of the Persian arms. Not until 480 b. c. were the
armies ready for what was expected to be a great conquest.
It has been said that never in the history of the world
has such a motley array of soldiers been gathered together
under one commander. All nations subservient to Persia were
represented, and while Herodotus may have overstated their
number, we may accept his statement that it was the largest
force ever thus far marshalled together. At the defense of
Thermopylae the Persians learned the character of their oppon-
ents, A little band of three hundred Spartans under com-
mand of Leonidas held the entire Persian army at bay in a
narrow pass for two days. When the army spread out over
the land, the Greeks realized their inability to cope with it
and decided to hazard all on a naval engagement. The famous
battle of Salamis followed, in which 1,000 men-of-war belong-
ing to the Persians were destroyed or put to flight by 300
Greek vessels. Xerxes watched the fight from a throne hastily
constructed for him on the shore. When at night his naval
forces withdrew to Asia, he could scarcely credit the outcome.
Byron has immortalized the occasion in a stanza:
344 THE worIvD's progress.
" A king sate on the rocky brow
Which looks o'er sea-born Salamis;
And ships, by thousands, lay below.
And men in nations — all were his!
He counted them at break of day —
And when the sun set where were they ? "
Leaving a strong land force to conquer the Greeks the
next year, Xerxes returned to Persia. By the following
spring the Greeks had gathered their forces, and inspired by
their glorious victory at Salamis, they defeated the Persian
army in the battle of Platsea. Thereupon the Greek cities
in Asia Minor asserted their freedom, and Greek independence
shone forth triumphantly before the world.
" But this glorious struggle and triumph of the few lifted
to superhuman heroism by an ennobling moral principle, as
against the merely brutal force of numbers, does not properly
belong any more to the history of the East, nor to that of
remote antiquity; it is the dawn of a new star in the West,
and of times which, from their spirit, actors, and achieve-
ments, may almost be called modern. At the bottom of the
new departure lies the difference between the ideals — the con-
ceptions of beauty and dignity of the political and social life
— set up by the Oriental and Western man : * A good
master ! ' is the prayer and ideal of the Asiatic. * No master !
Liberty at any price, as the highest good in itself ! ' is that
of the Greek. And the Greek wins the day, for his own
time, and for his own race, and for future times and races
to come." *
The following period, embracing nearly 150 years, was
a time of decay and degeneracy. With Xerxes began the cor-
ruption of the Persian court — the licentiousness, assassina-
tions, murders, and accompanying crimes which soon under-
mined the entire social order. Conditions were such that
rulers were no longer strong, vigorous men, full of life and
ambition — save indeed those usurpers who occasionally appro-
priated the reins of government. The days of Persian great-
ness were over, and under guidance of one or another of the
•Ragozin: Persia.
THB story of The PERSIANS.
345
princes, the state plunged on to ruin. In 336 b. c, Alexander,
the young king of Macedonia, embarked upon his world con-
quests, and the Persian Empire merged into the Empire of
Greece.
the persian king
(with attendants).
34^ th^ worIvD's progress.
CHAPTER XX.
Manners and Customs Among the Persians.
There were wide differences between the civilization of
the Persians and of the dwellers in the Tigris-Euphrates
valleys. The Persian despised trade. His religion taught
him to speak the truth, and he regarded commercial dealings
as incompatible with this requirement. No shops made the
principal streets in his country the scenes of hot disputes con-
cerning prices and wares. The few shops which existed at
all were tucked into obscure places on unfrequented by-ways.
It naturally followed that there was an absence of those in-
dustrial centers which in Babylonia produced rare stuffs, deli-
cate fabrics and ornaments. Swarms of slaves provided what-
ever was required by the wealthy, and it was the Persian's
boast that his sword brought him the luxury of the world in
tribute.
It has been estimated that the total population of Persia
did not exceed 2,000,000. A small proportion of these were
peasants who tilled the arable soil. Agriculture was held
honorable and was encouraged by the national religion. The
great majority of men were soldiers.
Since the soldier's life was thought to be worthy of a
Persian, we may do well to consider whatever features char-
acterized the service in this empire. Probably because of the
mountainous country in which they dwelt, chariots were never
popular with these people. Ordinarily they were impractical,
being suited to plains and accessible places. Nevertheless a
few were used and these were furnished with scythes attached
to the axle. Chariots formed the front line of defense. Be-
hind them the foot soldiers were arranged in squares, with
cavalry on the wings. One commander — the king, if he
were present, — gave commands to all from his position in the
center. This was an evident fault, for, were he killed or in
any way disabled, the entire army sometimes took fright and
fled. When the charge was made, the chariots dashed ahead,
hewing right and left. They seldom failed to break the solid
line drawn up before them, whereupon the infantry and horse
SOCIAL UFE IN PERSIA. 347
followed, taking advantage of the confusion thus wrought.
If the regular line of Persian soldiery was broken or in any-
way disturbed, since they had no reinforcements in a second
division, the battle was almost always lost. To prevent such
an occurrence was their aim. It has been said that the Ori-
entals of this time could not be trusted to fight unless they
were well supported at the rear — hence the custom of form-
ing one deep line. The native Persians were brave soldiers,
but their ranks were generally composed largely of subjects
levied throughout the empire. Scantily clothed Nubians
fought with clubs and stones in the same army with well-
equipped natives. Drawn up by nation, in native custom, it
is not surprising that they presented a sight marvellous indeed
to the foreigner.
The contrast between Greek and Persian military tactics
was marked. The Greeks trusted to their solid, heavily-armed
phalanx; the Persians tried to equip themselves as lightly
as possible, and trusted to their agility and swiftness of
motion. Their leniency toward captives has been mentioned
before. They found no delight in mere slaughter.
Literature and learning had little part in the life of the
average citizen. The boy was left with his mother until five
years of age. Then his education began. He rose before
dawn and was trained in running, throwing stones, and shoot-
ing with an arrow. At seven he was taught to ride, and in
Persia this implied much. He must be able to spring on a
horse running at full speed, to shoot accurately when under
rapid motion. In course of a few years' practice it was not
strange that a Persian was never so at ease as on his horse.
Furthermore, he was compelled to endure severe hardships — ■
sleeping under the open sky, eating only one meal in two days,
making long marches, and swimming streams burdened with
his weapons. At fifteen years of age he was considered a
man and was enlisted in the army, where he ordinarily served
until fifty.
During the period of the Persian empire, a numerous body
of officials made up the king's retinue. Besides the farmers,
soldiers and officials, there were many slaves, who completed
the social body. They performed all kinds of labor, built
the palaces and made fine roads throughout the realm.
348 th^ worIvD's progress.
The Persian court has probably never been excelled in
ceremony and pomp. Ceremony surrounded the monarch dur-
ing hours of retirement and seclusion as well as when before
the public eye.
" The officers in most close attendance on the monarch's
person were, in war, his charioteer, his stool-bearer, his bow-
bearer, and his quiver-bearer ; in peace, his parasol-bearer, and
his fan-bearer, who was also privileged to carry what has
been termed the * royal-handkerchief.' Among the officers
of the Court, less closely attached to the person of the monarch
than these, may be mentioned the steward of the household;
the groom or master of the horse ; the keeper of the women's
department, the king's * eyes ' and * ears ' — persons whose
business it was to keep him informed on all matters of im-
portance; his scribes, who wrote his letters, his messengers
who went his errands, his ushers, his tasters, who tried the
various dishes set before him lest they should be poisoned;
his cup-bearers, who handed him wine and tasted of it; his
chamberlains who assisted him to bed ; and his musicians, who
amused him with song and harp. Besides these, the Court
comprised various classes of guards, doorkeepers, huntsmen,
grooms, cooks, and other domestic servants in abundance, to-
gether with a vast multitude of visitors, guests, princes, cap-
tives of rank, foreign refugees, ambassadors, and travellers.
We are assured that the king fed daily within the precincts
of his palace as many as 15,000 persons, and that the cost
of each day's food was 400 talents. A thousand beasts were
slaughtered for each repast, besides abundance of feathered
game and poultry. . . . On all occasions the guests, if
they liked, carried away any portion of the food set before
them, conveying it to their homes where it served to support
their families." '
Prescribed etiquette governed everyone, from the king to
his meanest subject. The august king must dine alone, or
at best have with him the queen and her son. He could be
approached only with certain ceremony. Ceremony and form
were by no means confined to royalty and the court. Men of
dififerent rank met each other with established form and salu-
tation ; certain tasks could be performed only by persons who
>Rawlinson: Persia.
Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y.
Damascus SwoRn-MAKF.u.
SOCIAIv UF^ IN PERSIA. 349
could perform no other tasks. This led to a large body of
idlers around the court, ready to take part in any intrigue or
conspiracy. They gathered around the homes of the wealthy
as well as the palace of the king — water-bearers, adorners,
awakers, and each rigidly confined himself to his single duty.
In early times the Persians indulged in a single meal
each day. The custom continued later, but now the feast began
with the morning and ceased only with night. The amount of
wine a man could drink became his boast. In place of the
regular habits, frugal fare and constant exercise of early times,
were substituted the prolonged feast, all kinds of indulgencies,
and idleness.
The royal harem provided apartments for the king's sev-
eral wives in early years. Towards the close of the empire,
provision had to be made for some three hundred and sixty
— if we may trust one writer. The jealousies, differences and
intrigues which arose from this quarter can scarcely be im-
agined. Each wished her son to be given preference, and
this ambition, together with the restlessness accompanying
enforced seclusion, stimulated crime and fostered conspiracies.
The favorite of the king might toy with the lives of his sub-
jects— even with the lives of those dear to him, at will. No
subject in the land had reason to think his life secure — least
of all, he who was today powerful.
For diversions — other than Court intrigues — the king
turned to the hunt. Dice throwing was the national game,
and the carving of wood was a frequent pastime. Since little
was known of books, men were forced to find some means
of passing hours unoccupied with national affairs or private
concerns.
Dress had been simple in early years. As time went on,
it became more complex; even matters of cosmetics and per-
fumes were later deemed of weighty importance.
There is more to attract us in the Persian state during
years of its earlier simplicity, while yet the soldier found his
deepest satisfaction in military skill, bodily exercise and great
endurance, than in the period of imperial greatness, when the
court of Persia exceeded in splendor anything since known.
1—24
350 the w0ru5's progrkss.
Thb Religion op Persia.
Some time between 1(300-650 B.C., it is supposed there lived
a religious reformer by the name of Zarathushtra, or Zoroaster.
Both his birth-place and birth-date are alike unknown, but it is
supposed that he lived in Bactria, a country which reached
indefinitely along the Caspian Sea.
Little has come down to us concerning the great teacher
himself. He early felt called to his religious mission. Retiring
from the world, tradition says he lived for some years upon a
remote mountain, and here a divine vision came to him. He
communed with Ormuzd, the spirit of Good, and knew that his
work was to reclaim man, who in blindness had wandered
away from truth and light, and to bring him into new rela-
tionship with the divine spirit which was ever ready to win
mankind to himself.
At the age of thirty, Zoroaster was prepared to preach the
new law. For ten years he wandered about, but found few
to listen to him. His family and friends were gradually won
to the faith he taught, and returning to the Caspian Sea region,
he found more willing hearers.
The conceptions from which he had evolved his faith were
already accepted to some extent by those among whom he
came. He taught that there were two spirits — Ormuzd or
Good, embodying all truth, life, beauty, order, light; and
Ahriman, or Evil, including all darkness, death, falsity and
disorder. Life was a struggle between these two contend-
ing forces. " He laid before his people their own thoughts
in all the pure transparency of crystal waters cleared from
muddiness and unwholesome admixtures in the filter of his
own transcendent and searching mind. He guided their grop-
ing hands, and made them grasp the truth for which they were
blindly reaching. Such is the mission of every true prophet
Had the people not been ripe for his teaching, he could not
have secured a hearing, or made himself understood ; the peo-
ple, on the other hand, could never have worked out unaided
the ideal to which they were vaguely and only half-con-
sciously drawn. They listened and understood, and were
won, because, to use the expression of a great writer, they
had in themselves the seed of the thoughts which the prophet
expounded to them." *
2 Ragozin : Media and Persia.
SOCIAL hl^t IN PERSIA. 351
Seven times divine beings brought messages to Zoroaster.
" They inculcate the doctrine of purity of body as well as of
soul; they enjoin the care of useful animals, especially the
cow and the dog; they emphasize the necessity of keeping the
earth, the fire and the water undefiled; and from several of
their ordinances we can see that Zoroaster was a civil reformer
as well as a spiritual guide. Foremost among the command-
ments is the abhorrence of falsehood, the universal obligation
to speak the truth. This is one of the most fundamental of
the ethical tenets which form the basis of the entire ancient
Persian religious system." '
The writings which contained the teachings of Zoroaster
are commonly known as the Zenda- Vesta. The name is mis-
leading however, and should read Avesta-u-Zend, which trans-
lated means : " Law and Commentary." Among students the
compilation is generally called the Avesta. Even a casual
reading of the Old Testament reveals the fact that the various
books composing it were written by different writers, writ-
ing under radically different circumstances, and at widely dis-
tant periods. The same is true of the Avesta. One of its
books was probably written either by Zoroaster himself or
under his supervision. This is the Gathas, or book of songs,
and is the most ancient portion of the entire collection. Ser-
mons, prayers, and sayings are therein contained, some of
which possess poetic beauty and rare purity. Other books
were added from time to time, until the Avesta is said to have
been made up of twenty-one books, and to have covered 1,200
cowhides.
When Alexander the Great conquered Persia in 332 b. c,
elated by his victory, and having drunk heavily of wine, he
allowed his soldiers to burn the capital, and with it perished
much of greatest value. Most of the Persian literature was
then destroyed, together with the noblest specimens of Persian
architecture and decoration. While cities were few, it seems
remarkable that the only copies of the Avesta wei»e burned.
For several centuries following, the teachings of this sacred
book lived only in tlie memories of priests. Finally in 325
A. D., a council was called to take measures to have these
ancient doctrines committed to writing. Naturally the result
•Jackson : Persia, the Land and Its History.
352 THE world's progress.
was fragmentary and incomplete. Only those portions of the
original text which had been in daily use proved to be well re-
membered. These were mainly prayers and invocations. The
priests in all probability, seized the opportunity to insert what-
ever forms of worship and modified beliefs they desired to em-
phasize. Their final effort, while far from satisfactory, embraces
all which now remains of the religion of Zoroaster and his fol-
lowers.
In 636 A.D. the Mohammedan Arabs made a religious crusade
and undertook to blot out the old Persian religion. Most of the
descendants of the early nation yielded to the fire and sword. A
small portion of them took refuge in India, where they were al-
lowed to worship as they chose. Only with them was the Avesta
preserved. These Parsis have been called "the ruins of a peo-
ple, as their sacred books are the ruins of a religion." Of them
Justi writes: "There is no religious body in the world whose
practice is so completely in harmony with their moral code."
The collection of Zend Fragments, commonly known as the
Zend-Avesta, falls into two parts: The Avesta, properly so-
called, which contains- (1) compilations of religious laws and
mythical tales; (2) collections of litanies for the sacrifice; (3)
litanies and hymns written in a language older than the rest of
the Avesta. Secondly, these writings contain the Small Avesta,
made up of short prayers, recited by all the faithful. It was
fitting that these collections of fragments be preserved, so far
as possible, in their original dialect, but since these were no
longer intelligible even to the educated, the Zend, or explanation
— commentary — was attached in the prevailing tongue. Other-
wise the greater portion of the work could not have been under-
stood. Some of the creation stories were not included in the
Avesta, but were gathered together with other myths in the
Bundehesh,
All worshippers are classified by the Avesta as followers of
Ormuzd — Good, — or Ahriman — Evil. One could either stand
for good or against it. "Now shall I proclaim unto you, O ye
all that here approach me, what the wise should lay to their
hearts ; the songs of praise and the sacrificial rites which pious
men pay the Lord, and the sacred truths and ordinances, that
what was secret until now may appear in the light 'Hear with
your ears that which is best, and test it with a clear understand-
ing, before each man decides for himself between the two teach-
ings/
sociAiv uF:e IN PERSIA. 353
" The two Spirits, the Twins, skilfully created, in the begin-
ning, Good and Evil, in thought, in speech, in deed. And,
between these two, the wise have made the right choice; not
so the senseless. If, O men, you lay to your hearts these
ordinances which Ormuzd instituted, and the good and evil,
and the long torments which await the followers of falsehood,
and the bliss that must come to the holders of the true faith,
it will go well with you."
Followers of Zoroaster abhorred idolatry. No image of
their God corrupted their conceptions. In early times they
built no temples, having only altars whereupon sacrifices were
made. Darius often mentions Ahuramazda (Hormuzd) in his
inscriptions as the highest god of the Persians, and it is highly
probable that Cyrus was also a worshipper, a fact which made
him sympathetic toward the religion of the Jews and accounts
for his willingness that they rebuild a temple in Jerusalem for
the worship of Yahweh.
In later years, forms and symbols crept into the service,
for abstract teachings did not hold the masses of the people.
Fire was conceived to be a symbol of the God of Light, and
even today there seems to be a certain charm in the concep-
tion that " a pure and undefiled flame is certainly the most
sublime natural representation of Him who is in Himself
Eternal Light." There must have been a sublimity in the
sight of the pure flames, rising to heaven from the mountain-
tops, while prayers and hymns of praise were poured out to
the one great Spirit, by whatever name known.
As days of degeneracy overtook Persia, the religion was
affected by the general lassitude and decay. A modernized
form of the early faith is found today among some 100,000 wor-
shippers in Arabia and India.
A Hymn.
"We worship Ahura Mazda (Ormuzd), the pure, the master
of purity.
" We praise all good thoughts, all good words, all good deeds
which are or shall be; and we likewise keep clean, and
pure all that is good.
" O Ormuzd, thou true, happy being ! We strive to think, to
speak, and to do only such actions as may be best fitted
to promote the two lives (the life of the body and of the
.soul).
354 The worIvD's progress.
" We beseech the spirit of earth for the sake of these our best
works to grant us beautiful and fertile fields, to the be-
liever as well as to the unbeliever, to him who has riches
as well as to him who has no possessions."
From the Avesta. Part I.
" O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One ! Which is
the first place where the Earth feels most happy ? "
Ahura Mazda, the Good Principle, answered : " It is the place
whereon one of the faithful steps forward, O Zoroaster,
with the holy wood in his hand,* the baresma in his hand,*
the holy meat in his hand,' the holy mortar in his hand,*
fulfilling the law with love, and beseeching aloud
Mithra."
" O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One ! Which is
the second place where the Earth feels most happy ? "
Ahura Mazda answered : " It is the place whereon one of the
faithful erects a house with a priest therein, with cattle,
with a wife, with children, and good herds within ; and
wherein afterwards the cattle go on thriving, holiness is
thriving, fodder is thriving, the dog is thriving, the wife
is thriving, the child is thriving, the fire is thriving, and
every blessing of life is thriving."
" O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One ! Which is
the third place where the Earth feels most happy ? "
Ahura Mazda answered : " It is the place where one of the
faithful cultivates most corn, grass and fruit, O Zoroaster !
where he waters ground that is too dry, and dries ground
that is too wet."
" O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One ! Which is
the fourth place where the Earth feels most happy ? "
Ahura Mazda answered : " It is the place where there is most
increase of flocks and herds."
" O I\Iaker of the material world, thou Holy One ! Which is
the first place where the Earth feels sorest grief?"
Ahura Mazda answered : " It is the neck of Arezura,' whereon
the hosts of fiends rush forth to the burrow of the Drug.^ "
» Food for the altar fire. * Sacred twigs held by the priest while recit-
ing prayers. 3 Meat for sacrifice. «Used for crushing the Haoma, an in-
toxicating plant, whose juice is used by the faithful. eQod of good fields
and pastures. « Mount at the gate of hell whence demons rush forth. ' Hell.
SOCIAIv UFS IN PERSIA. 355
**0 Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! Which is
the second place where the Earth feels sorest grief ? "
Ahura Mazda answered : " It is the place where most corpses
of dogs and of men lie buried,"
" O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One ! Which is
the fifth place where the Earth feels sorest grief?"
Ahura Mazda answered : " It is the place whereon the wife
and children of the faithful, O Zoroaster, are driven along
the way of captivity, the dry, the dusty way, and lift up
a voice of wailing,"
*' O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One ! Who is the
first that rejoices the Earth with greatest joy?"
Ahura Mazda answered : " It is he who digs out of it most
corpses of dogs and men."
Ancient Hymn from the Avesta.
"I am the Keeper; I am the Creator and the Maintainer; I am
the Discerner; I am the most beneficent Spirit.
My name is the bestower of health; my name is the best be-
stower of health.
My name is the Holy; my name is the most Holy.
My name is the Glorious; my name is the most Glorious.
My name is the far-seeing; my name is the Farthest-seeing.
My name is Holiness; my name is the Great one; my name is
the good Sovereign ; my name is the best of Sovereigns.
My name is the Wise One ; my name is the Wisest of the Wise ;
my name is He who does good for a long time.
These are my names.
And he who in this material world, O Zoroaster! shall recite
and pronounce these names of mine either by day or
by night; .
He who shall pronounce them when he rises up or when he
lays him down ; when he lays him down or when he rises
up; when he binds on the sacred girdle, or when he un-
binds the sacred girdle ; when he goes out of his dwelling-
place, or when he goes out of his town, or when he goes
out of his country and comes into another country;
That man, neither in that day nor in that night shall be wounded
by the weapons of the foe. . . . ; not the knife, not the
cross-bow, not the arrow, not the sword, not the club, not
the sling-stone shall reach him and wound him.
356
TH^ world's progress.
But these names shall come in to keep him from behind and to
keep him in front . . . from the evil ones, bent on
mischief, and from that fiend which is all death — Angra
Mainyu.
It will be as if there were a thousand men watching over one
man.
—Trans. Zend-Avesta: Sacred Books of the East.
Max Muller, ed. V. 4, 23, 31.
JSSl^'ei^
25^PeS^^^■T^
PART OF archer's FRIEZE IN AN
ANCIENT PERSIAN PALACE.
SOCIAI. UFB IN PERSIA. 357
CHAPTER XXI.
Contributions of Babyi^onia, Assyria and Persia To
Modern Civiuzation.
It is often difficult to correctly estimate the power exerted
by a statesman upon his country. The movements he has
espoused, the reforms he may have championed, the institu-
tions he helped to call into being, all stand as monuments to his
memory. But the subtle effects of his influence, his personal-
ity and character upon his own generation and others still to
come, are seldom understood or adequately judged. In the
case of a nation the task becomes still more complicated, and
we cannot today know how many of our ideas, inventions, and
attainments have been shaped by nations whose light went out
long centuries ago. Nevertheless, our inability to estimate
these various inheritances aright need not deter us from an
attempt to classify such bequeathments as are universally
acknowledged, and we may be sure that the present world
owes much to the earliest nations of Western Asia. Their
contributions, however, have not come down to us directly,
but have been passed along, like legends, from one people to
another, until their present form scarcely suggests their
origins.
Let us consider first our indebtedness to Babylonia. In
recent years discoveries in the Euphrates valley and the mastery
of the cuneiform style of writing have given us masses of
material wherefrom to reconstruct the past. Not only has
light thus been thrown upon the early history of Babylonia
and Assyria, but aid has been rendered biblical study. The
tribal life of the Hebrews, and the civilization of other con-
temporary peoples has been better understood because of these
revelations. However, acquisitions of the last century have
had no part in molding modern civilization, and we pass on
to matters of earlier significance.
No people could have worked as diligently in the field of
science as the Babylonians did and failed to leave important
results of their investigations. " In Geometry the Chaldeans
made about the same progress as the Egyptians; in Arithmetic
358 THE WORIvD's progress.
more. Their notation combined the decimal and duodecimal
systems. Sixty was a favorite unit, used as the hundred is
by us. Scientific Medicine was hindered by the belief in
charms and amulets; and even Astronomy was studied chiefly
as a means of fortune-telling by the stars, — so that in Europe
through the Middle Ages an astrologer was known as a
Chaldean. However, the level plains and clear skies, as in
Egypt, invited to an early study of the constellations, and
some important progress was made. As we get from the
Egyptians our year and months, so from the Chaldeans we get
the week, with its * day of rest for the heart,' as they called
the seventh day, and the division of day and night into twelve
hours each, with the subdivisions into minutes. They also
invented the water clock and the sundial. They foretold
eclipses, made star maps, and marked out on the heavens the
apparent yearly path of the sun. The zodiacal * signs ' of our
almanacs commemorate these early astronomers. Every
great city had its lofty observatory and its royal astronomer;
and in Babylon, in 331 b. c, Alexander the Great found a
continuous series of observations running back nineteen hun-
dred and three years.
" To a degree peculiar among the ancients, the men of the
Euphrates made practical use of their science. They under-
stood the lever and pulley, and used the arch in vaulted drains
and aqueducts. They invented the potter's wheel, and an
excellent system of weights and measures. Their treatises on
agriculture passed on their knowledge in that subject to the
later Greeks and Arabs. They had surpassing skill in cutting
gems, and in enameling and inlaying; and their looms pro-
duced the finest of muslins and of fleecy woolens, to which
the dyer gave the most brilliant colors. In many such in-
dustries little advance has been made since, so far as results
are concerned." *
Certain unfortunate bequests were left by them. Baby-
lonian belief in demons was handed down through the
Hebrews, and in the Middle Ages took the form of the devil,
with horns and a cloven foot. Their faith in magic and in-
cantations also descended to Mediaeval times, and as scientific
interest superseded religious fervor, inspired men to search
for the "philosopher's stone,"
» West: Ancient History.
SOCIAIv UFE IN PERSIA. 359
The intensely practical turn of mind in Mesopotamia
revealed itself in the literature, which was bare of imagery.
Material beauty — artistic carpets, tapestries, and rugs, was
developed, but for beauty of conceptions, we must turn to the
Greeks.
What did the war-loving, blood-thirsting Assyrians leave
for future ages? At first the question seems not to be easily
answered. One calls to mind their ravaging raids and un-
paralleled carnage, and remembering that their palaces and
stores of inscribed tablets were recovered only within the
last fifty years, their contributions are not so apparent. Yet,
having studied the government enforced by Darius upon his
empire, we are compelled to admit that he but improved upon
the system evolved by the Assyrian kings, unknown before
their time in Asia. Again, the very conquests themselves were
helpful, in spite of their cruelty, for they brought the best
civilization of their day to half-barbarous tribes who other-
wise might have passed century after century before reach-
ing the degree of progress so rudely thrust upon them. These
conquests opened up routes of commerce, and trade has always
exceeded all other factors as a civilizing force.
To science the Assyrians appear to have made no contri-
butions whatever.
Coming to ancient Persia, we find a wholly different cul-
ture. The people of this country lacked the practical turn of
mind so characteristic of the Babylonian, and his mercenary
point of view was quite unknown to them. Persian literature,
while scanty, embodied poetical conceptions, and several of the
ancient poems possess much art. " The Persians had fancy
and imagination, a relish for poetry and art, and they were
not without a certain power of political combination. Yet
we cannot justly ascribe to them any high degree of intellec-
tual excellence. If the great work of Firdausi represents to
us, as it probably does, the true spirit of their ancient poetry,
their efforts were but of moderate merit. A tone of exag-
geration, an imagination exuberant and unrestrained, a prefer-
ence for glitter over solid excellence, a love of far-fetched
conceits, characterize the Shahnameh; and, though we may
ascribe something of this to the individuality of the poet,
still the conviction presses upon us that there was a childish
3^0 TH^ wori.d's progress.
and grotesque character in the mass of old Persian poetry,
which marked it as the creation of moderate rather than of
high intellectual power, and prevents us from regarding it
with the respect with which we view the labors of the Greeks
and Romans, or again, of the Hebrews, in this department.
A want of seriousness, a want of reality, and, again, a want
of depth, characterize the poetry of Iran, whose bards do not
touch the chords which rouse what is noblest and highest in
our nature. They give us sparkle, prettiness, quaint and in-
genious fancies, grotesque marvels, an inflated kind of human
heroism; but they have none of the higher excellences of the
poetic art, none of the divine fire which renders the true poet,
and the true prophet, one." *
The Persian religion was both noble and sublime, and its
teaching concerning the two opposing forces of good and evil,
affected the philosophy of the Greeks, and indirectly, the
thought of the later Christian world.
By carrying the plan of Assyrian conquest further, the
Persians opened districts remote from social centers and helped
the course of civilization. Their systematic government im-
proved upon the one developed by Assyria in this particular:
each governor was made supreme in his province under As-
syrian administration, none other being accountable to the king
for conditions in his territory. An opportunity thus offered
for the governor to seize any favorable moment to shake off
allegiance to the state and attempt to establish his own suprem-
acy. Darius, on the other hand, posted troops in each satrapy,
and both the commander of these troops and the governor
were required to submit reports, and to act jointly in certain
matters. In this way, one served as a check upon the other.
Fine roads were built to allow rapid communication be-
tween the capital and distant provinces; these naturally facili-
tated commerce, and made travel safe — as one has graphically
expressed it, " helped set the world a-mixing."
A new day was dawning for humanity, and an age com-
ing when one might look back to the infancy of the world,
likening its progress to that of a man who has gained some
perceptions, some ideas and experiences in childhood days
which unconsciously but surely, influence his later life, illumi-
nated by wider experiences and deeper truths.
* RawUnson : Persia.
ASSYRIAN LITERATURE. 361
THE BOOK-STAMP OF SARDANAPALUS.
ASSURBANIPAL, OF, as the Greeks called him, Sardanapalus, is
supposed to have stored in his palace at Nineveh not less than 30,000
tablets. Upon every work in his library his ownership was stamped
as follows:
The; Palace op Assurbanipal, King op Regions,
King of Multitudes, King oe Assyria, to whom
THE God Nebo and the Goddess Tasmeti have
GRANTED attentive EARS AND OPEN EYES TO DIS-
COVER THE Writings of the Scribes op my King-
dom, WHOM the Kings my Predecessors have
EMPLOYED. In my respect for Nebo, the God op
Intelligence, I have collected these tablets:
I HAVE HAD THEM COPIED: I HAVE MARKED THEM
WITH MY NAME; AND I HAVE DEPOSITED THEM IN
MY Palace.
THE CHALDEAN ACCOUNT OF THE DELUGE.
This account was first translated by George Smith from the eleventh
of a series of tablets describing the adventures of the mythical hero,
IzDUBAR (or Gilgamish), supposed to be the same as Nimrod. The
whole series of tablets relates his early life and exploits in hunting, his
friendship with the faun labani, his victory over the tyrant Humbaba,
the love of the Goddess Ishtar, his illness, the death of labani, his wan-
derings to find his ancestor, Hasisadra (or Pir-napishtim), who for his
piety had been translated to the fellowship of the gods. This ancestor
relates to Gilgamish the story of a great flood resembling in general out-
line the narrative in Genesis, but stamped with the impress of the Chal-
dean religion. Shamas was the Sun-god.
The early literature of many nations contains stories of a universal
flood, from which a favored family or individual alone escapes. None
is more striking than the one deciphered from the clay tablets of Chaldea,
or more nearly parallel to that of the Hebrew Scriptures.
TABLET XL OF THE GILGAMISH EPIC
The following translation is from Professor Craig:
The Babyw)nian Story oe the DEiyUGE.
Pir-napishtim saith to him, even to Gilgamish ;
I will relate to thee, Gilgamish, a secret story.
And the decision of the gods I will tell thee.
362 THE WORIvD'S progress.
The city Shurippak, which thou knowest,
Is situated on the shore of the Euphrates.
This city was old when the gods within it
Were moved to produce a flood, even the great gods.
They were Anu, their father,
The warrior Bel, their counsellor,
Their throne-bearer, Ninib,
Their leader, Ennugi,
Ninigiazag (the god Ea) had spoken with them
And their decree he repeated to the reed-house (saying) :
"Reed-house I reed-house ! house-wall ! house-wall !^
Reed-house, hear 1 and house-wall, consider !
0 man of Shurippak, son of Ubar-Tutul
Construct a house, build a ship.
Abandon possessions, seek life.
Property despise, and life save,
Put seed of life of every kind into the ship.
The ship which thou shalt build, even thou.
Let be measured her dimensions:
Let her breadth and length be equal,
Upon the ocean launch her."
1 understood, and said to Ea, my lord :
"Behold, my lord, what thou hast commanded
I hold in reverence, I shall do.
(But what) shall I answer the city, the people, and the elders?"
Ea opened his mouth and speaketh,
Saith unto his servant, unto me:
"T) man I Thus shalt thou say unto them:
Bel has rejected me and cursed me.
I shall dwell no more in your city.
And upon Bel's ground I shall not set my face.
But to the ocean shall I descend ; with Ea, my lord, I shall dwell.
Upon you he shall cause to pour out abundance.
Game of birds and game of fishes,
(Animals of all kinds) ; field-fruits in plenty,
When in the evening the ruler of the darkness ( ?)
Shall cause to rain upon you a heavy rain."
iThe house for its inhabitants. Compare Isaiah 1. 2: Hear, O
heavens, and give ear, O earth.
TH^ BABYI^ONIAN STORY OP Th:^ D^I^UG^. 363
As soon as dawn began to appear,
(Five or six lines wanting)
The weak (?) .
The strong brought to (the building-place) what was necessary.
On the fifth day I laid down her form.
Ina Kar-Hv-Sa one hundred and twenty cubits high were her
walls,
One hundred and twenty cubits likewise was the extent of her
roof.
Its outer frame I constructed, enclosed it.^
I . « . . . her six times.
I divided ..... seven times.
Its interior I divided nine times.
Water plugs I beat into it on its inside.
I provided a rudder ( ?) and what was needed I added.
Six sars of bitumen I spread on the outside ( ?).
Three sars of pitch (I spread) on the inside.
Three sars of basket-bearers brought oil.
I left one sar of oil which the offering consumed.
Two sars of oil the shipman stowed away.
For the people I slaughtered oxen,
I killed . . . every day.
New w(ine, sesame) wine, oil and wine,
Like the waters of the river ( I gave the people to drink)
And (held) a religious feast like unto the New- Year's Feast.
I opened (?) ... of anointing oil, my hand applied (it).
(In the month) of Shamash, the great god, the ship was com-
pleted.
Because were difficult
(Untranslatable) they brought above and below.
two-thirds of it.
All that I had I put on board of it.
All that I had of silver I put on board of it.
All that I had of gold I put on board of it.
All that I had of seed of life of every kind I put on board of it.
I caused to go up into the ship all my family and relatives.
Cattle of the field, beasts of the field, all the craftsmen, I caused
to go up.
'The meaning h/?re and in the next four limes is not'clear.
364 THE W0RI4)'S PROGRESS. ^
A definite time the god Shamash had appointed:
The ruler of the darkness ( ?) at even-tide shall cause to rain a
heavy rain,
Enter thou (then) within the ship and close thy door."
That appointed time came.
The ruler of the darkness ( ?) at eventide rained a heavy rain.
The appearance of that day I (fore) saw.
To behold the day I had fear.
I entered into the ship and closed my door.
For the control of the ship to Puzur-Bel
The great-house I gave over together with its store.
With the first appearing of dawn
There rises from the foundation of the heavens a black cloud,
Ramman within it thunders.
Nebo and Marduk march in front ;
Over mountain and plain march the throne-bearers.
The tar-kul-li the great Dibbarra tore away.
Ninib advances, ruin he pours out.
The Anunnaki bear aloft torches.
With their brightness they set the land aflame.
The dread of Ramman reaches to heaven.
Everything bright he turneth to darkness.
. the land like ... he covered (?)
One day the hurricane (raged),
Violently it blew, the waters (covered?) the mountains.
Like the (onslaught of) battld over mankind (they) came.
Brother sees not (his) brother.
Men are not discerned in heaven (i. e., by the gods).
The gods were terrified by the flood, and
Withdrew and ascended to the heaven of Anu.
The gods dog-like cower, crouch on the wall (of heaven).
Ishtar screams like a woman in travail.
She cries aloud the lady of the gods, the sweet- voiced :
"Verily the former race is turned to clay.
Just as I in the assembly of the gods proclaimed evil.
As I proclaimed in the assembly of the gods evil
For the destruction of my people war I foretold.
So, verily, will I bring forth my people
Tho' like the fry of fishes they fill the sea."
The gods, the highest of the Anunnaki weep with her.
THE BABYU)NIAN STORY OF THE DElyUGE. 3^5
The gods are downcast, sit, and weep,
Covered were their lips .
Six days and nights
The wind prevailed, flood and storm overwhelmed the land.
When the seventh day came the storm abated, the flood was over-
come,
Which had battled like a warring host;
The sea calmed, the hurricane ceased, the flood was restrained,
I beheld the sea, uttering a lamentation,
Seeing that all mankind was turned to clay.
When the light had fully dawned I prayed.
I opened an airhole and light fell upon my cheeks.
I bowed myself, I sat down, I wept.
Over my cheeks ran my tears.
I looked upon the far-spread waters of the sea.
After twelve double-hours a peak arose,
Towards the mountain of Nitsir the ship took its course.
The mountain of Nitsir held the ship and let it not rise.
One day, a second day, the mountain of Nitsir, ditto
A third day, a fourth day the " " "
A fifth day, a sixth day " " « "
When the seventh day arrived
I brought forth a dove and let it go.
The dove went forth, flew to and fro, but
A resting-place there was not, so it returned.
Then I brought forth a swallow and let it go,
The swallow went forth, flew to and fro, but
A resting-place there was not so it returned.
(Then) I brought forth a raven and let it go.
The raven went forth, the disappearance of the waters he saw,
He eats, caws, flies to and fro, and returns not.
(Then) I brought forth to the four winds, I offered a sacrifice.
I made an incense-offering on the top-most peak of the mountain.
Seven and seven adagur-wessels I placed.
Into them I cast reeds, cedar-wood, and
The gods inhaled the good odour.
The gods like flies swarmed about the offerer.
As soon as the mistress of the gods arrived
She lifted up the gfreat jewels ( ?) that the god Anu had devised
and made for her (and said)
1—26
366 THE world's progress.
"These gods, by my lapis lazuli necklace I shall not forget
These days, verily I shall reflect upon and never forget.
The gods, let them go to the incense-offering.
(But) let not Bel go to the incense-offering,
Seeing that he did not reflect but caused the flood.
And my people he counted for destruction.
As soon as Bel arrived
He saw the ship and Bel was sore angry,
He waxed wroth against the gods, the Ig^g^.
"Some soul has escaped" (he said),
"Let no man survive the destruction."
Ninib openeth his mouth and speaketh.
He speaks to the warrior Bel :
"Who but Ea doeth (this) thing?
But Ea is wise in every undertaking."
Ea openeth his mouth and speaketh,
Saith to the warrior Bel :
"Thou sage of the gods, warrior !
Verily, verily, thou didst not reflect, and didst make a flood :
Upon the sinner lay his sins.
Upon the impious his impiety.^
Spare, let him not be cut off, have mercy, let him (not be utterly
destroyed).
Instead of bringing on a flood,
Let the lion come and reduce mankind.
Instead of bringing on a flood.
Let the hyaena come and reduce mankind.
Instead of bringing on a flood,
Let famine be sent and the land (reduced).
Instead of bringing on a flood,
Let the Pest-god come and destroy the land.
As for me, I have not revealed the secret of the gods.
I caused Atrahasis to see a vision and thus he learned the secret
of the gods."
Thereupon his counsel was taken
And Bel ascended within the ship.
Seized me by the hands and brought me up (to a point still
higher).
iThis is evidence that the deluge, as in the Old Testament, was a
punishmsnt for sin, which some writers (not Assyriologists) have de-
nied in the interest of an outgrown view of the Bible.
ISHTAR*S DESCENT TO HADES. 367
He brought up and made to bow beside me my wife,
Turned us face to face, stood between us and blessed us :
*'In former times Pir-napishtim was human
But henceforth Pir-napishtim and his wife shall be like us gods
And Pir-napishtim shall dwell afar off at the mouth of the rivers."
Then they took me and afar off at the mouth of the rivers they
caused me to dwell.
THE DESCENT OF ISHTAR TO HADES.
IsHTAR was the Babylonian Venus or goddess of love. The story of
her descent to Hades and return to the world of the living is found on a
tablet now in the British Museum, and is perhaps the most poetical legend
of the recovered Assyrian literature. It has been suggested that the story
is the text of a religious drama, resembling the miracle-plays of me-
diaeval Europe. The legend shows no reason for Ishtar's desire to enter
Hades, but it is easy to suppose that she went thither to rescue some
beloved person. This supplies a connection with the familiar story of
Venus and Adonis (or Tammuz), which the Greek writers declare to be
of Syrian origin. The drama, if such it were, was probably part of the
annual celebration of the return of Spring. Ninkigal, the Queen of
Hades, corresponds to the Greek Persephone, and Latin Proserpina, the
wife of Pluto. In like manner, Ea, the king of the gods, corresponds to
Zeus or Jupiter, and the divine messenger to Hermes or Mercury.
A Babylonian Epic — Ishtar's Descent to Hades.
(Translation by Professor Craig.)
On the land without regress, the land (that thou knowest),
Ishtar, Sin's daughter, did fix her attention,
The daughter of Sin did fix her attention,
On the dwelling of darkness, the abode of Irkalla,
On the dwelling whose inhabitant comes no more out,
On the road whose advancing knows no returning,
On the house whose inhabitants removed from the light,
Where they're nourished with dust and clay is their food,
Where they see not the light, but in darkness are dwelling,
And are clad like the birds with a covering of wings ;
On door and on bars lies the dust thickly gathered.
Arrived at the door of the land without regress,
To the porter in keeping, this order she giveth :
Thou watcher of waters, throw open thy portal I
368 THE world's progress.
Throw open thy portal, within will I enter !
If the door be not opened that I may pass through it.
The door will I shatter, its bolt break in pieces.
Its sills will I burst, its doors tear asunder.
The dead will I raise up, devourers and living.
Even more than the living the dead will I raise up.
The porter then opened his mouth and made answer.
To the great goddess Ishtar, made answer the porter;
"Withhold! O my lady, do not break it away,
1 go to Allatu, thy name to announce."
The porter announced to the queen, to Allatu :
"Thy sister, Ishtar, is come over these waters
When Allatu these tidings received (from the porter),
Like a tamarisk cut she (bowed herself down) ( ?).
Like a reed that is broken she (bent to the ground) ( ?).
"What bringeth her heart to me, pray? What trouble?
With this one forsooth (shall I share my dwelling?)
As food eat the clay and as wine drink the water.
Weep over men who their wives have abandoned.
O'er maidens who mourn the embrace of their lovera.
Weep o'er the infants destroyed e'er their day?
Go I porter, throw open thy door— open to her I
And treat her according to olden-time law."
The porter departed, threw open his door;
"O enter, my lady, a welcome in Hades!
Palace of the land, that knows no returning,
O let it rejoice in thy presence."
The first door he caused her to enter, and halting.
Removed the great crown from her head.
**Why tak'st thou the great crown from my head, O porter?**
"O enter, my lady, *tis the law of Allatu."
The next door he caused her to enter, and halting,
The rings were removed from her ears.
"Why tak'st thou the rings frcwn my ears, O porter?"
*'0 enter, my lady, 'tis the law of Allatu."
The third door he caused her to enter, and halting.
ishtar's descent to hades. 369
The necklace removed from her neck.
"Why tak'st thou from my neck the necklace, O porter?"
"O enter, my lady, 'tis the law of AUatu."
The fourth door he caused her to enter, and halting,
Her jewels removed from her breast.
"Why tak'st thou from my breast the jewels, O porter?'*
"O enter, my lady, 'tis the law of Allatu."
The fifth door he caused her to enter, and halting.
The bearing-stone girdle he took off from her waist.
"Why tak'st thou from my waist my gemmed-girdle, O porter?"
"O enter, my lady, 'tis the law of Allatu."
The sixth door he caused her to enter, and halting.
Took the rings from her hands and her feet.
"Why from hands and from feet take the rings, pray, O porter ?"
"O enter, my lady, 'tis the law of Allatu."
The seventh door he caused her to enter, and halting.
From her body her cincture removed.
"Why take from my body my cincture, O porter?"
"O enter, my lady, 'tis the law of Allatu."
To the land without regress when Ishtar descended,
Allatu beheld her and raged in her presence;
Imprudently, boldly, did Ishtar attack her.
Then opened Allatu her mouth and commanded.
To Namtar, her servant, the order was given:
"Go Namtar, confine her
With disease of the eye, and the hip, and the foot,
With disease of the heart, and the scalp, go smite Ishtar,
Afflict her whole person I"
After Ishtar, the goddess, had (been thus afflicted) (?)
The bull no more covered the cow, nor ass gendered;
No more in the street lay the man with the maiden ;
The man went asleep in his place.
In her place slept the maiden.
The god's-servant, Pap-su-kal, face down and sad-visaged.
Was clothed in the garb of deep mourning.
Shamash went, sorely wept before Sin, his father.
His tears ran down before the king, Ea,
Saying : "Ishtar's gone down to the land, and returns not
37° The wori^d's progress.
Since Ishtar's descent to the land without regress
The bull no more covers the cow, nor ass genders;
No more in the street lies the man with the maiden.
The man falls asleep in his place,
In her place sleeps the maiden."
Then Ea created a male in his wisdom,
The god's-servant, Uddushu-namir, created.
"Go! Uddushu-namir, to land without regress,
Seven doors of the land without regress be opened!
Allatu behold thee, rejoice in thy presence !
Her heart when at ease, and her spirit when joyful;
In name of the great gods do thou adjure her:
'Thy head raise, to Hal-skin direct thy attention,
0 lady, I pray thee, Halziqu-skin give me;
1 desire to drink of the waters within it.' "
This hearing, Allatu her sides smote, her nails bit.
"Of me thou hast asked an impossible favor.
Hence! Uddushu-namir, with curse will I curse thee;
Thy food it shall be the foul mud of the city,
From drains of the city shalt thou drink the water,
The shade of the wall shall be thy dwelling.
Thy place of abiding a stone-block shall build it.
Confinement, privation, thy strength let them shatter.'*
Allatu then opened her mouth and commanded.
To Namtar, her servant, the order was given :
"Go! Namtar, beat on the palace eternal!
Go ! rap on the stone slabs, those made out of pa-stone.
Go ! lead forth the spirits, on golden thrones set them.
With water-of-life sprinkle Ishtar, the goddess.
Lead her forth from my presence."
Then went Namtar, beat on the palace eternal.
And shook the stone slabs those made out of ^a-stone ;
He led forth the spirits, on golden thrones set them,
With water-of-life sprinkled Ishtar the goddess.
Led her forth from her presence.
Through first door he led her, gave to her her cincture.
ishtar's decent to hades. 371
Through second door he led her, her rings he gave to her.
Through third door he led her, gave back her gemmed-girdle.
Through fourth door he led her, gave back her breast- jewels.
Through fifth door he led her, gave to her her necklace.
Through sixth door he led her, gave to her her ear-rings.
Through seventh door he led her, the great crown gave to her.
Here ends the descent of Ishtar. The priest continues :
"If free she'll not free her, return with her to her
And for Tammuz, her bridegroom in years that were youthful,
Pour water e'en purest, with sweet balm (anoint him)
And clothe him with garments, a flute (give unto him).
Companions of Ishtar, let them wail with loud (wailing),
The goddess, Belili, her treasure completed.
High heaped are the eye-stones, her knees now supporteth.
Her brother's complaint she then understanding,
The great goddess Belili her treasures outpouring,
She fills with the eye-stones the floor round about her (saying)
*My only one, brother mine, do me no evil.'
When Tammuz with flute of fine lapiz discourseth,
Then play with him joyfully flute of fine beryl.
And play with him joyfully men mourners and women.
The dead may arise the sweet incense inhaling."
Note. — See Jastoon, "Religion of Babylonia anc Assyria," page
563 ff., for a full discussion of this epic.
GYGES AND ASSURBANIPAL.
te»j)^t^R««««««M««ii?M«ia«e)««<i5»a«rt^py??75gg
' V
Gyges, king of Lydia, reigned B.C. 716-678. The Greek historian
Herodotus has given an interesting account of him, but still more
interesting is the following extract showing how he v/as regarded by
the great king of Assyria, Assurbanipal (Sardanapalus).
Gyges was the king of Lydia, a countr)'- beyond the seas,
a distant land, of whicli the kings, my fathers, had never even
heard the name. Assur, my divine generator, revealed my
name to him in a dream, saying : *' Assurbanipal, the king of
Assyria ; place thyself at his feet, and thou shalt conquer thy
enemies in his name." The same day that he dreamed this
dream, Gyges sent horsemen to salute me, and related to me
the dream which he had had, by the mouth of his messengers.
When the latter reached the frontiers of my empire and
encountered the people of my empire, they said to him,
"Who then art thou, stranger, whose land has never yet been
visited by one of our couriers ? "
They sent him to Nineveh, the seat of my royalty, and
brought him before me. The languages of the East and of
the West, which Assur had given into my hand, none of those
who spoke them could understand his language, and none of
those who surrounded me had ever heard speech like unto it.
In the space of my empire at last I found one who understood
it, and he told me the dream. The same day that he placed
himself at the feet of me, the king Assurbanipal, he defeated
the Cimmerians, who oppressed the people of his land, whc
had not feared the kings, my fathers, and had not placed
371a
THE world's progress.
37ih
themselves at ray feet. By the grace of Assur and Ishtar, the
gods my masters, they took amidst the chiefs of the Cimmeri-
ans, whom he had defeated, two chiefs whom he chained
heavily with manacles and fetters of iron, and he sent them
to me with a rich present.
Nevertheless the horsemen that he at first sent regularly
to pay homage to me, he soon ceased to send. He would not
obey the commands of Assur, my divine generator, but fool-
ishly trusted in his own strength, and in the wishes of his
heart. He sent his troops to the assistance of Psammetichus,
king of Egypt, who had contemptuously thrown off my yoke.
I heard this, and prayed to Assur and Ishtar: "May his
body be thrown down before his enemies, and may his bones
be dispersed." The Cimmerians, whom he had crushed in
my name, reappeared and subjugated his whole land, and his
son succeeded him upon the throne. The punishment which
the gods, who are my strength, had drawn upon his father at
my request, he told me by his messengers, and he placed him-
self at my feet, saying : " Thou art a king acknowledged by
the gods. Thou cursedst my father, and misfortune fell upon
him. Send me thy blessing, for I am thy servant, who fears
thee, and will wear thy yoke."
37 1 C PERSIAN WTERATURE.
PURITY.
*' Purity is the best of all things ; purity is the fairest of
all things, even as thou hast said, O righteous Zarathustra. "
With these words the holy Ahura-Mazda rejoiced the holy
Zarathustra: "Purity is for man, next to life, the greatest
good ; that purity which is procured by the law of Mazda to
him who cleanses his own self with good thoughts, words and
deeds. ' '
O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! This
law, this fiend-destroying law of Zarathustra, by what great-
ness, goodness, and fairness is it great, good, and fair above
all other utterances ?
Ahura-Mazda answered : "As much above all other floods
as is the sea, so much above all other utterances in greatness,
goodness, and fairness is this law, this fiend-destroying law of
Zarathustra. As much as a great stream flows swifter than a
slender rivulet, so much above all other utterances in great-
ness, goodness, and fairness is this law, this fiend-destroying
law of Zarathustra. As high as the great cypress tree stands
above the small plants it overshadows, so high above all other
utterances in greatness, goodness, and fairness is this law, this
fiend-destroying law, of Zarathustra. As high as heaven is
above the earth that it compasses around, so high above all
other utterances is this law, this fiend-destroying law of
Zarathustra.
" Therefore when the high priest has been applied to by a
penitent, when any of the Magi has been applied to, whether
for draona-service* that has been undertaken or that has not
been undertaken, the priest has power to remit one-third of
the penalty he had to pay : if he has committed any other
evil deed, it is remitted by his repentance ; if he has com-
mitted no other evil deed, he is absolved by his repentance
forever and ever.'*
* A service in honor of spirits or deceaced persons in which small
cakes {jdraona) are blessed in their name and eaten by those present.
The wori^d's progress. 37 1'^
ZOROASTER'S PRAYER.
This Gatha or hymn is supposed to be a prayer prescribed by
Zoroaster for the teachers of his religion. The first verse is the prelude
always used before reciting or chanting any of the Gathas in the Parsi
religious service.
A strengthening blessing is the thought, a blessing is the
word, a blessing is the deed of the righteous Zarathustra. May
the Bountiful Immortals accept and help on the chants. Homage
to you, O sacred Gathas !
With venerating desire for this gift of gracious help, O Mazda,
and stretching forth my hands to Thee I pray for the first bless-
ing of Thy bountiful Spirit ; that is, I beseech of Thee that my
actions toward all may be performed in Righteousness ; and with
this I implore from Thee the understanding of Thy Good Spirit,
in order that I may propitiate the Soul of the Kine.
And therefore, O Great Creator, the Living Lord ! inspired by
Thy Good Spirit, I approach You, and beseech of Thee to grant
me as a bountiful gift for both the worlds, that of the body and
that of mind, those attainments which are to be derived from the
Divine Righteousness, and by means of which those who receive
it may enter into beatitude and glory !
O thou Divine Righteousness, and thou Good Spirit of Deity !
I will worship you, and Ahura Mazda the first, for all of whom
the pious ready mind within us is causing the imperishable
Kingdom to advance. And while I thus utter my supplications
to You, come Ye to my calls to help !
Yea, I will approach You with my supplications, I who am
delivering up my mind and soul to that heavenly Mount whither
all the redeemed at last must pass, knowing full well the holy
characteristics and rewards of the actions prescribed by Ahura
Mazda. And so long as I am able and may have the power, so
long will I teach Your people concerning these holy deeds to be
done by them with faith toward God, and in the desire for the
coming of the Divine Righteousness within their souls.
And, thou Righteousness! when shall I see thee, knowing
the Good Mind of God, and above all the Obedience of our lives
which constitutes the way to the most beneficent Ahura Mazda ?
Asking this, I thus beseech thee, for with this holy word of sup-
plication we best keep ofi" with tongue the flesh -devouring fiends,
the very sign and power of all spiritual foulness'
THE HEBREWS AND THEIR NEIGHBORS.
CHAPTER L
Syria.
YRIA is the northern extremity of the Arabian
peninsula. The word Syria is a shortened form
of Assyria, and was given by the Greeks, at first
to the whole Assyrian empire, and later re-
stricted to the strip of land between the Medi-
terranean Sea and the Euphrates valley. To-
day the name is applied to the region east of Palestine, reach-
ing to the Taurus mountains on the north and on the south
and west bounded by deserts.
Its very location determined that this should never become
the home of a united, homogeneous people. It has always been
a highway connecting Asia and Africa and trade routes have
extended through it since the earliest recorded ages. Egyptian
armies pressing into Asia in an early day traversed its midst
and so did those of somewhat later times pushing westward
from Mesopotamia, bound upon foreign conquest.
" Syria lies between two continents — Asia and Africa ; be-
tween two primeval homes of men — the valleys of the Euph-
rates and the Nile; between two great centers of empire —
Western Asia and Egypt: between all these, representing the
Eastern and ancient world, and the Mediterranean, which is
the gateway to the Western and modern world. Syria has
been likened to a bridge between Asia and Africa — a bridge
with the desert on one side and the sea upon the other;
and, in truth, all the great invasions of Syria, with two ex-
ceptions, have been delivered across her northern and south-
ern ends. . . . Syria is not only the bridge between Asia
and Africa: she is the refuge of the drifting populations of
Arabia. She has not only been the highroad of civilizations
and the battle-field of empires, but the pasture and the school
372
SYRIA. 373
of innumerable little tribes. She has been not merely an open
channel of war and commerce for nearly the whole world, but
the vantage-ground and opportunity of the world's highest
religions. In this strange mingling of bridge and harbour,
of highroad and field, of battle-ground and sanctuary, of
seclusion and opportunity — rendered possible through the strik-
ing division of her surface into mountain and plain — lies all
the secret of Syria's history, under the religion which has
lifted her fame to glory."*
The country falls naturally into many small districts in
which petty states have arisen but which never developed into
strong kingdoms. These have left but scanty remains of their
civilizations.
We know nothing of Syria prior to 3500 b. c. There are
evidences that this region, like Chaldea, was occupied first by
a primitive people, probably belonging to the Turanian race.
When a great Semitic outpouring from Arabia caused the
ancient Chaldean nation to be engulfed by a vigorous people.
S} ria as well suffered an invasion.
During years of Babylonian dominance, Syria fell to the
share of Babylonian kings. " The land of the setting sun,"
as they called it, was named with their possessions.
When Thutmose III. led his armies into Asia to avenge
the insult done Egyptian honor when the Hyksos kings ruled
the valley of the Nile, he established a certain supremacy over
Syria which lasted for perhaps two centuries. He established
several royal cities, or "halting places" — so called because
his majesty tarried in them and directed the construction of
fortifications. Tribute was exacted and was paid with some
regularity until the time of Amenhotep IV. He was too
occupied with religious reformation and the exaltation of the
Solar Disk faith to give attention to his foreign possessions.
The Tell-el-Amama letters in many instances portray the
condition of Syria when Egypt's name was no longer a pro-
tection and incoming tribes were plundering right and left.'
The spirit of unrest was again abroad among the nations
and the Hittites now invaded Western Asia. Who they were
and from whence they came has never been satisfactorily set-
^George Adam Smith : Historical Geog. of the Holy Land. 6. » Tell-el-
Amarna Letters described in The Story of Babylonia and Assyria.
374 THE wori^d's progress.
tied. Certain it is they were not Semitic. They belonged to
the great white race, but their history is still to be written.
Part of the natives sided with them; part remained loyal to
Egypt, and the rest attempted to establish their own independ-
ence. Commerce was interrupted, caravans were plundered,
and civil strife was general throughout the land. In a brief
time the Hittites made themselves supreme in Syria, which
became known as the Land of the Hittites.
About 1200 B. c. a fresh invasion brought several new
tribes, among others, the Philistines. They again were prob-
ably not Semitics but of the Aryan race. The Hittite nation
was now broken up into several small states, none of which
became as powerful as the original nation. With the weak-
ening of Hittite strength, opportunity arose for petty states
to develop. The great powers left the country in peace for
three or four hundred years, and Syrian states prospered and
grew strong.
The era of the Judges in Israel fell into this period, and
between the Hebrews and certain Syrian tribes there was in-
termittent war.
With the reign of Tiglath-Pileser I. Assyria launched forth
on her career of conquest. In a westward march made by this
conqueror, northern Syria yielded to Assyrian arms and offered
tribute. Damascus alone was left undisturbed, for opposition
was sure to be strong on the part of this ancient city. With
some intervening years during which tribute could not be col-
lected and when allegiance to Nineveh was denied, Assyrian
influence dominated Syria, and frequently vigorous rule was
enforced. When Assyria fell, the New Babylonian empire
kept guard over the west. With the end of Babylonian rule,
and the ascendency of Persia, Semitic dominance came to an
end. Under Persia, and later under Greece, new states came
into existence and Aryan rule began.
In the ages with which we are at present concerned, how-
ever, Syria remained to the portion of Semitic tribes. We
have found Arabia the original home of this race. Providing
at best but a scanty living for her children, when tribes multi-
plied rapidly Arabia seems to have cast out a portion of her
inhabitants to make room for the rest. Chaldea — later Baby-
lonia— was peopled by such an outpouring, while at the same
J
SYRIA. 375
time tribes spread into Syria and settled spots which promised
adequate food and pasturage. Later comers were compelled
to journey past these occupied lands and seek lands farther
west, or to overcome the natives and supplant them. Some
one has aptly said that different tribes fitted themselves into
the " shelves and corners of Syria," and that is just what they
did. It would have been as impossible for Syria, with its
irregular surfaces, to have produced one united nation as for
Greece or Switzerland to have contained a people whose
national concerns outweighed their local interests. Highland
and lowland, plateau and plain, mountain range and valley —
these at length were occupied by little clans or more numerous
tribes, while the more exposed regions were open to the nomads
who came like birds for a season, or tarried a few brief years
and penetrated farther west, or who perhaps merely loitered
on their way to Egypt — the land of water and abundant grain.
" Syria is the northern and most fertile end of the great
Semitic home — the peninsula of Arabia. But the Semitic
home is distinguished by its central position in geography —
between Asia and Africa, and between the Indian Ocean and
the Mediterranean, which is Europe; and the role in history
of the Semitic race has been also intermediary. The Semitics
have been the great middlemen of the world. Not second-
rate in war, they have risen to the first rank in commerce and
religion. They have been the carriers between East and West,
they have stood between the great ancient civilizations and
those which go to make up the modem world ; while by a higher
gift, for which their conditions neither in place nor in time
fully account, they have been mediary between God and man,
and proved the religious teachers of the world, through whom
have come its three highest faiths, its only universal religions.
Syria's history is her share in this great function of inter-
medium, which has endured from the earliest times to the
present day." '
"The head of Syria is Damascus," wrote Isaiah two
thousand years ago. So it has since continued to be, with
short periods of change. The venerable city, made possible
and beautiful by the waters of the Abana, has survived many
sacks and slaughters. It is sometimes called the oldest city
8 Smith: Hist. Geog. of Holy Land, 5.
^•j6 THE world's progress.
in the world, meaning of course, the one of greatest age yet
standing. Still it has few relics of antiquity. Old material
has constantly been utilized in the construction of new build-
ings and monuments. Its position has often been commented
upon. " It is an astonishing site for what is said to be the
oldest, and is certainly the most enduring, city of the world.
For it is utterly incapable of defence; it is remote from the
sea and the great natural lines of commerce. From the coast
of Syria it is double barred by those ranges of snow-capped
mountains whose populations enjoy more tempting prospects
to the north and west. But look east and you understand
Damascus.
" You would as soon think of questioning the site of New
York or of San Francisco. Damascus is a great harbour of
refuge upon the earliest sea man ever learned to navigate. It
is because there is nothing but desert beyond, or immediately
behind this site; because this rivei, the Abana, instead of
wasting her waters on a slight extension of the fringe of fertile
Syria, saves them in her narrow gorge till she can fling them
well out upon the desert, and there, instead of slowly expend-
ing them on the doubtful possibilities of a province, lavishes
all her life at once in the creation of a single great city, and
straightway dies in face of the desert — it is because of all
this that Damascus, so remote and so defenceless, has endured
throughout human history, and must endure. Nineveh, Baby-
lon and Memphis easily conquered her — she probably preceded
them, and she has outlived them. She has been twice sup-
planted— ^by Antioch, and she has seen Antioch decay, by
Baghdad, and Baghdad is forgotten. She has been many
times sacked, and twice at least the effective classes of her
population have been swept into captivity, but this has not
broken the chain of her history. She was once capital of the
world from the Atlantic to the Bay of Bengal, but the vast
empire went from her and the city continued to flourish as
before. Standing on the utmost edge of fertility, on the shore
of the much-voyaged desert, Damascus is indispensable alike
to civilization and to the nomads. Moreover, she is the city
of the Mediterranean world which lies nearest to the far East,
and Islam has made her the western port of Mecca." *
• Smith : Hist Geog. of Holy Land. 642.
SYRIA. 377
Having traversed the desert wastes, the city of Damascus
lies invitingly before the wearied traveller. There is an old
tradition that Mohammet once approached the town and viewed
it from neighboring hills. Before him lay its grateful shade
and restful streets, its tide of busy life, its wealth, its diver-
sions— behind him lay the monotonous sea of sand, its parch-
ing heat and treeless plains. The great religious teacher was
apparently afraid to trust himself to the enticing influences
of the city. He turned away, saying : " Man can enter Para-
dise but once ; if I pass into Damascus I shall be excluded from
the other Paradise reserved for the faithful."
Our word damask stands today in memory of the age
when damask or Damascus silk, embroidered in richest colors,
with threads of silver and gold, stood forth unmatched by
fabrics of other lands. Today the word is ordinarily applied to
round linen thread, woven in fruit, flower, or conventional
designs, as was the silk originally.
The swords of Damascus also gained world-renown. They
were so thin that they could be tied into knots without injuring
them in the least, and so strong that they would cut through
iron or wood without being marred. A certain watery steel,
more true and resilient than ordinary, made the "trusty sword
of Damascus" popular in many lands.
It lies beyond our province to trace the comings and goings
of tribes within the land of Syria. At best Syrian history is
fragmentary and is suited for the student of the Semitic race
rather than the general reader. We shall happen upon facts
connected with it as we study the history of the Hebrews,
and the empire age of the Mesopotamian states.
I -26
^•/\i THE worIvD's progress.
CHAPTER II.
The Land oe Phoenicia.
Geographically, Phcenicia was a small state. It lay be-
tween a spur of the Taurus mountains — Mt. Casius — on the
north and Carmel on the south ; washed by the Mediterranean
Sea on the west, it was protected by a lofty mountain range
on the east. These natural boundaries were important, since
they shut in the land and sheltered it in a great measure from
invasions and plundering raids.
About 200 miles in length, Phoenicia ranged from one to
thirty-five miles in width. A narrow sandy coast-belt skirted the
western side and was covered with date-palms, which gave the
region its name. Greek sailors, coasting along the eastern
shore of the sea, saw the luxuriant palms from afar, and called
the whole eastern coast Phoenike — Land of Palms. Later,
learning more particularly of the various nations which dwelt
therein, they restricted the name to the country we are now
studying.
East of the palm belt extend the fertile plains of Phoenicia.
Here grew gardens, orchards and fields of-grain, which made
the district a veritable paradise. " * The cultivated tract
presents for the most part an unbroken mass of corn, out of
which rise here and there slight eminences in the midst of
gardens and orchards — the sites of cities.' The gardens are
gay with scarlet blossoms of the pomegranate, the orchards
famous for the enormous oranges which diversify the green
foliage of their shady groves." * Here was grown the food
supply which supported the whole population of the country,
generally speaking, while on the low hills which bounded the
plain on the east, the vine, olive and mulberry were cultivated.
At last, the high mountains arose, bare in spots and else-
where covered with forest trees — oaks, chestnuts and the
mighty cedars.
Several streams, mountain-born, rushed down steep sides,
furnished moisture and added fertility to the plains, then found
' Rawlinson : Phoenicia, Z,
THE STORY OF PHOENICIA. 379
their way to the sea. Chief of these in early times, as today,
was the Litany. This river rises 10,000 feet above the sea,
and " forces its way through Lebanon by a deep and narrow
gorge, in which it frets and chafes many hundred feet below
the eye of the spectator, descending precipitously, and at last
debouching upon the plain by a ravine, about five miles north-
east of Tyre. It has been compared to a * monster serpent
chained in the yawning gulf, where she writhes and struggles
evermore to escape from her dark and narrow prison, but
always in vain, save only near the sea-shore, where her wind-
ings reach a close.' " "
Irregularities of the coast supplied harbors which would
be quite inadequate for modern ships, but sufficed for the ves-
sels of antiquity. Fringes of islets, near the shore, made
refuge for sailors in time of storm in an age when no boats
drew deep water, and when even the largest might be drawn
up on the beach if necessary.
The climate of Phoenicia varied according to the locality.
That of the plain was mild and pleasant, while snow lay most
of the year upon the mountain peaks rising easterly. The
scenery of the narrow strip changes constantly as one journeys
east or west. Islands of the Mediterranean invited the sailor
to venture far out from his native shore, and at an early period
the sea was dotted over by the merchant-ships of the Phoeni-
cians. East, north and south high mountains offer a varied
aspect to the traveller. The Lebanon range has always been
notably beautiful. " The elevation rises gradually as w<» pro-
ceed north-ward, until the range culminates in the peaks above
the cedars, which are estimated to attain a height of from nine
thousand to ten thousand feet. . . . Garden cultivation
carpets the base of the mountain; above this is, for the most
part, a broad fringe of olive groves; higher up, the hill sides
are carefully terraced, not an inch of ground being wasted;
and among sharp cliffs and pointed rocks of a grey-white hue
are strips of cornfields, long rows of dwarf mulberries, figs,
apricots, apples, walnuts, and other fruit trees. Gorges,
ravines, charming glens, deep valleys, diversify the mountain
sides; here and there are tremendous chasms, with precipices
that go sheer down for a thousand feet; tiny rivulets bound
2 Rawlinson : Phoenicia, 11.
380 THE world's progress.
and leap from rock to rock and from terrace to terrace, form-
ing chains of cascades, refreshing and fertilizing all around.
In the deep gorges flow copious streams, shaded by overhang-
ing woods of pines or cedars; and towards the summit are in
several places magnificent cedar groves, remnants of the
primeval forest which once clothed the greater part of the
mountain. Above all towers the bare limestone of the dorsal
ridge, always white enough to justify the name Lebanon
(White Mountain), and for eight months of the year clothed
with a mantle of snow." ^
Semitic tribes, journeying out of Arabia at a remote
period, crossed into Chaldea, and after a sojourn which can-
not now be estimated, worked their way westward to the
region just described. In all probability Turanians held the
territory. With these they intermingled and inter-married,
while kinsmen coming later from the old Arabian home, kept
the stock nearly pure Semitic.
One of the oldest settlements was made at Sidon, the
name of the town commemorating the earliest occupation of
its people. Sidon signifies fishery, and it is supposed that the
first comers were fishermen. In later years when Sidon was
the wealthiest city in Western Asia, and when her proud
merchantmen had left nets to the portion of the humblest
born, the early name stood in memory of primitive days.
Sidon was built on the shore, while her natural harbor
consisted of a little circlet of islands which afforded shelter for
sailing crafts. An excellent harbor was constructed with this
breakwater, but it is significant to note that Sidon's strong-
holds were on the shore.
Some of her inhabitants at length departed from the
mother-city and settled at Tyre, near the southern part of the
Phoenician coast. The word Tyre means rock, and while set-
tlements were made on the shore as well, the famous city of
antiquity was built on an island, half a mile from the main-
land. This island was about two and one-half miles in width
and was completely surrounded by a wall, one hundred feet
high. With water around her and mighty walls as well. Tyre
was wellnigh impregnable in times of siege.
The little town of Dora grew up where shell-fish abounded
•RawlLnson: Phoenicia, 17.
THE STORY OF PHOENICIA. 381
These were valued for a secretion they yielded which was made
up into 1 dye of royal purple, world-renowned in ancient times.
Gebal became famous for its shipyards. Tripolis gained celeb-
rity as bead of a league of cities made up of Tyre, Aradus and
Tripolis.
The Phoenicians left no history of their country. No other
ancient people came in contact with so many nations and none
had more material at hand from which to formulate a record
of their time, but they were a nation of traders and appear
to have been quite lacking in literature of their own and in
chroniclers of any sort. Not only is there utter dearth of
writings, but ruins and remains of Phoenician civilization are
comparatively few. The Phoenicians built well, but their
structures were either torn down by ruthless conquerors, or,
like those of Carthage, became quarries for other nations.
We are consequently forced to reconstruct their history from
other sources — from writings of men of other lands, often
hostile to them and so prejudiced in their point of view. The
characteristic life of the Phoenicians led into the busy marts
of men — not to the library or cloister, and a study of their
history involves a study of the commerce of their time.
It is doubtful whether the future can produce material for
any complete history of Phoenicia. We know practically noth-
ing of the prehistoric period in the countrj^ and when reports
of the nation begin, the people had already reached a high
proficiency on the sea and possessed wealthy cities. The com-
mercial spirit, so strong in the Semitic race seems to have
reached its extreme expression in the people of this little state.
If they possessed any aptitude for pursuits other than trading,
we know little of them. In the periods known to us there was
no national life nor government. Each city developed inde-
pendently and appears to have had only commercial ambitions.
The natural contour of the land allowed the people to build
up a mighty system of trade which penetrated into every
country known to antiquity, while their sea-ports remained
long protected from aggressive rulers of Egypt and Mesopo-
tamia.
The Phoenician cities were mentioned as early as 1475
B. c, when Thutmose III. made his strength felt in Western
Asia. They united with the Hittite nation against him, but
were defeated and made gifts of submission.
382 THS wori,d's progress.
Sidon was the older city, and tradition has it that about
1200 B. c. the Philistines — earlier inhabitants of the country —
fought a battle with Sidon and defeated her, whereupon some
of her citizens escaped and founded Tyre. Quite as probable
is a more recent supposition that Sidon, wealthy and given
over to ease and pleasure, gradually weakened, while the
younger and more vigorous town of Tyre became the leader.
Hiram seems to have been the most renowned king of
Tyre. He enlarged the island upon which the city stood. Fill-
ing in the lagoon between two islands, he joined them together,
forming thus one large island. Being a prolific builder, he
erected huge structures of stone, which together with wood,
made up the building material of Phoenicia.
For some time previous to his reign, Judah had been grow-
ing in strength. She had held out against the Philistines,
and was being welded into a well organized state. Hiram
considered it good policy to seek the friendship of Judah's king,
and he and King David remained good friends. This same
friendship was offered to Solomon when he succeeded his
father as ruler of the Hebrews, and aid was given the Hebrews
in the construction of their temple, Phoenician timber and
skilled workmen being supplied. An account of the matter
has come to us from the Hebrews : " And Hiram, king of
Tyre, sent his servants unto Solomon; for he had heard that
they had anointed him king in the room of his father: for
Hiram was ever a lover of David. And Solomon sent to
Hiram saying : * Thou knowest how that David my father
could not build an house unto the name of the Lord his God
for the wars which were about him on every side, until the
Lord put them under the soles of his feet. But now the
Lord my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there
is neither adversary nor evil occurrent. And behold, I pur-
pose to build an house unto the name of the Lord my God,
as the Lord spake unto David, my father, saying : * Thy son
whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build
an house unto my name. Now therefore command thou that
they hew me cedar trees out of Lebanon; and my servants
shall be with thy servants ; and unto thee will I give hire for
thy servants according to all that thou shalt appoint : for thou
knowest that there is not among us any that can skill to hew
timber like unto the Sidonians.*
THE STORY OF PHOENICIA. 383
" And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of
Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said: * Blessed be the
Lord this day, which hath given unto David a wise son over
this great people.' And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying: * I
have considered the things which thou sentest to me for; and
I will do all thy desire concerning timber of cedar and con-
cerning timber of fir. My servants shall bring them down
from Lebanon unto the sea : and I will convey them by sea in
floats unto the place that thou shalt appoint me, and I will
cause them to be discharged there, and thou shalt receive them :
and thou shalt accomplish my desire, in giving food for my
household.'
" So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees accord-
ing to all his desire. And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thou-
sand measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty
measures of pure oil: thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by
year. . . . And there was peace between Hiram and Solo-
mon; and they two made a league together. . » . And
the king commanded and they brought great stones, costly
stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house.
And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders did hew them,
and the stonequarriers : so they prepared timber and stones to
build the house." *
The temple stood at last a memorial to the skillful work-
manship of Phoenicia as well as a tribute of honor to Jehovah,
God of Israel.
After the death of Hiram, during whose reign the country
had prospered, the government soon passed from his family.
A class of wealthy merchants had arisen in Tyre and they de-
manded official positions for themselves. The king they
crowned became king of Sidon as well. Before 1000 b. C.
exiles from Tyre, driven out for political reasons, founded
Carthage, best known of all Phoenicia's colonies.
As early as 880 b. c. danger threatened Phoenicia from
Assyria. Protected by the efficient barrier of a mountain
range, the commercial ports had been free to develop their
trade without serious interruption. They immediately offered
to pay tribute rather than fight, and Assyrian tablets recount
products sent by them.
«I Kings, 5. 1-18.
384 THE world's progress.
By 727 B. c. the yoke of Assyria had become oppressive
and Tyre revolted. A siege of five years followed and wa?
at length raised with no result, for Tyre could not be cut off
from the sea. About 680 b. c. Baal was crowned king ol
Tyre with the consent of the Assyrian ruler. Nevertheless;
he shortly announced his independence and became a sturdy
opponent of Assyrian aggression. In 668 b. c. Asshurbanipal
led an army against the sea-coast cities, especially against the
most powerful, Tyre.
" Against Baal, King of Tyre, dwelling in the midst of
the sea, I went, because my royal will he disregarded, and did
not harken unto the words of my mouth. Towers round
about him I raised, and over his people I strengthened the
watch. On land and sea his forts I took; his going out T
stopped. Brackish water and sea water their mouths drank
to preserve their lives. With a strong blockade, which re-
moved not, I besieged them ; their spirits I humbled and caused
to melt away; to my yoke I made them submissive." When
Assyria was threatened by Median power, the cities on the
coast again shook themselves free from the hated tribute and
at this juncture Tyre rose to her greatest influence. About
600 B. c. Egypt tried to bring Western Asia under her domin-
ance and under her direction Phoenician sailors circumnavi-
gated Africa.
Nebuchadnezzar determined to end rebellions in the west
for all time and to bring the coast under Babylonian rule.
Tyre held out against him and a siege of thirteen years ensued,
The Hebrew prophet Ezekiel foretold the result:
" Behold I am against thee, O Tyre, and will cause many
nations to come up against thee, as the sea causeth his waves
to come up. And they shall destroy the walls of Tyre, and
break down her towers: 1 will also scrape her dust from her,
and make her like the top of a rock. . . .
" Behold I will bring upon Tyre Nebuchadnezzar, king of
Babylon, a king of kings, from the north with horses, and
with chariots and with horsemen, and companies, and much
people. He shall slay with the sword thy daughters in the
field : and he shall make a fort against thee, and cast a mount
against thee, and lift up the buckler against thee. And he
shall set engines of war against thy walls, and with his axes
THE STORY OF PHOENICIA. 385
he shall break down thy towers. By reason of the abundance
of his horses their dust shall cover thee : thy walls shall shake
at the noise of the horsemen, and of the wheels and of the
chariots, when he shall enter into thy gates, as men enter into
a city wherein is made a breach. With the hoofs of his horses
shall he tread down all thy streets: he shall slay thy people
by the sword, and thy strong garrisons shall go down to the
ground. And they shall make a spoil of thy riches, and make
a prey of thy merchandise: and they shall break down thy
walls, and destroy thy pleasant houses : and they shall lay thy
stones and thy timber and thy dust in the midst of the water.
" And I will cause the noise of thy songs to cease ; and
the sound of thy harps shall be no more heard. And I will
make thee like the top of a rock: thou shalt be a place to
spread nets upon." '
These prophecies were fulfilled, and having rallied again,
and once more sent forth their merchant vessels, these cities
fell shortly to the share of Persia. Cambyses depended wholly
upon their navy, so that when Phoenician sailors refused to
sweep down upon Carthage, he was obliged to abandon his
idea of subduing that colony.*
In 362 B. c. Sidon revolted against Persian oppression.
When at last the fall of their city was at hand, 40,000 Sidon-
ians shut themselves in their houses and set fire to them rather
than become spoils for the conqueror.
Some years later, when the young Macedonia conqueror,
Alexander the Great, reached this district in course of his brief
conquest, the Phoenician cities, wearied of Persian taxes, hailed
his coming with joy. One after another, the towns sent
presents until it was left for Tyre alone to do homage to the
young monarch. Her citizens sent an embassy to meet him
with a crown of gold and announced their willingness to do
his bidding. Alexander replied that he was pleased by their
action and would visit their city to offer sacrifices in their
temple— for the Greeks identified the god of the Phoenicians
with their Hercules. The reply being made known in the
city, the people feared that some hidden purpose prompted the
Greek to seek their island home, and they sent to him again
saying that they would pay whatever tribute he exacted, but
e^^kiel 26, 3-14. • See The Story of the Persians.
386 THS world's progress.
that they did not wish the Greek army to march through their
streets. This angered Alexander and he announced that if
the gates of Tyre did not open to him, he would open them by
force. Tyre had withstood many a siege and she did not
hesitate to take a firm stand. Carthaginians who chanced
to be within her walls advised that help would be forthcoming
were it needed, and it was supposed furthermore, that Persia
would never see her empire turned over to the Greeks with-
out a struggle. Above all, Tyre had faith in the strength of
her walls and in her fleet.
Sieges in the past had often failed because Tyre could not
be approached by battering rams and engines of war. As has
already been said, the island upon which the city stood lay
one-half mile from the shore. Her harbors were the best on
the Phoenician coast. One lay on the north side and was
called the Sidonian harbor because it looked towards Sidon;
the other was on the south side, and was called the Egyptian
harbor since it faced the land of the pyramids. Stone piers
ran out some considerable distance in the sea and made safe
refuge for vessels in stormy weather. Rough winds might
have made entrance to the port impossible had the harbor
extended on one side only, hence the two harbors were early
constructed and were connected by a canal, extending through
the city, making it thus possible for a ship to enter by one
harbor and clear port from the other.
Now Alexander conceived the bold design of building
a broad bridge or mole from the continent to the island, that
he might bring his war engines up to the city walls. Forth-
with, operations were started on the shore, in shallow water.
Two rows of piles were driven 200 feet from each other and
the intervening distance was filled in with earth and stone.
When the mole reached out where the force of the current
was felt, however, the earthwork was carried away as rapidly
as it was built. Moreover, the Tyrians grasped his plan and
harried the laborers continually. They brought their boats
near enough to attack them and compel them to abandon their
undertaking. The Greeks met this obstacle by preparing a
curtain of hides to cover the workmen, and raised two lofty
wooden towers wherein soldiers were stationed to charge upon
ships interfering with the work. The citizens of Tyre there-
THE STORY OF PHOKNIGIA. 387
Upon equipped one of their largest transports as a fire-ship,
and fining it with all sorts of combustible material, sent it
floating against the Greek towers, a mass of fire. This was
effectual, and Alexander returned from a temporary absence
to find the work of weeks obliterated. This general never
allowed confronting obstacles to baffle him, and under his per-
sonal supervision the labor began anew. The struggle had
come to mean more than the subjection of an independent city
— it signified Greek capacity and ingenuity against Asiatic
opposition on the very threshold of a coveted continent.
Earth, trees and stones were hurled rapidly into the sea,
but Tyrian divers with grappling hooks dragged out whole
trees and brush, destroying the solidity of the mass. Then
Alexander realized that he could accomplish nothing without
a navy. Without aid of a fleet he might be detained indefi-
nitely with one obstinate city. He immediately levied vessels
and crews from those towns which had already surrendered to
him. As fate would have it, the Persian fleet came voluntarily
into his hands and shortly 224 vessels were ready to move
against Tyre. Under their protection the construction of the
mole went on rapidly. Tyre soon understood that her only
hope lay in chancing a sea battle. The number of ships against
her was overwhelming, and after a gallant start, she was
defeated.
" The last chance was over — the last effort had failed —
but the Tyrians would not give in any the more. They still
met every attack upon the walls with a determined resistance,
and with a fertiUty of resource that was admirable. To
deaden the blows of the battering-ram, and the force of the
stones hurled from the catapults, leather bags filled with sea-
weed were let down from the walls at the point assailed.
Wheels set in rapid motion intercepted the darts and javelins
thrown into the town, turning them, aside, or blunting, or
sometimes breaking them. When the towers erected upon
the mole were brought close up to the defences, and an attempt
was made to throw bridges from them to the battlements,
and thus to pass soldiers into the city, the Tyrians flung grap-
pling-hooks among the soldiers on the bridges, which caught
in the bodies of some, mangling them terribly, dragging their
shields from others, and hauled some bodily into the air, dash-
388 THE world's progress.
ing them against the wall or upon the ground. Masses of
red-hot metal were prepared and hurled against the towers
and against the scaling parties. Sand was heated to a glow
and showered upon all who approached the foot of the walls :
it penetrated through the joints of the armour, and caused
such intolerable pain, that the coats of mail were torn off and
flung aside, whereupon the sufferers were soon put hors de
combat by lance thrusts and missiles. The battering-rams
were attacked by engines constructed for the purpose, which
brought sharp scythes, attached to long poles, into contact with
the ropes and thongs used in working them, and cut them
through. Further, wherever the wall showed signs of giving
way, the defenders began to construct an inner wall, to take
the place of the outer one, when it should be demolished." '
When the walls at length gave way and soldiers made an
entrance into the town, they had to fight a battle in every
house and win their ground in street and building, foot by
foot. Ten thousand were massacred and thirty thousand
women and children were sold into slavery. The city was
left in 332 b. c. in a half-ruined condition with few inhabi-
tants. In a few years Tyre rose again but the days of her
greatness were gone.
We have seen that during the first part of her history
Phoenicia was left practically alone and during the later portion
suffered repeated attacks. How can we account for the fre-
quent despoiling of her proud cities during her later years?
Owing to their position and consequent trade, the Phoenician
cities became wealthy rapidly. They naturally attracted the
notice of kings who were trying to carry on extensive pro-
jects at home. Those who conquered them, or who sought
to do so, coveted their riches for the adornment of their own
capitals or for some personal enterprise at home. So advan-
tageous was the situation of these cities that, left crippled
and in ruins by the enemy, or under less severe circumstances,
forced to pay a heavy tribute, losses were quickly made good,
and the stricken towns would soon again be amassing wealth.
Having control of the greater portion of the commerce of
their day, they were able to exchange commodities of slight
value with nations who possessed gold or other precious wares
' Rawlinson ; Phoenicia, 231 .
THE STORY OF PHOENICIA.
389
and knew nothing of their value, save that they were thereby
enabled to procure articles they desired. " Gold for brass,
the worth of a hundred oxen for the value of nine," — it was
this opportunity, recognized and seized upon, which made it
possible for this little strip of land to become the store-house
of riches coveted by nations on all sides.
Concerning the political history of Phoenicia we know little,
as has already been said. When her wealthy cities were
attacked by foreigners, these strangers have sometimes told
the story from their own point of view, but so far as govern-
ment in times of peace, local administration and kindred mat-
ters, material has not survived to allow its course of progress
to be reconstructed.
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390 THE wori^d's progress.
CHAPTER III.
Phoenician Coi<onies and Commerce.
It is natural to consider Phoenicia's colonies in connection
with her commerce, for while many nations have colonized
regions remote for the purpose of extending their territory
or perpetuating a faith, her outposts were opened solely for
the benefit of trade. Phoenicia's colonies may be said to have
been the outgrowth of her mercantile concerns, although in
some instances, dissatisfaction with political conditions in the
home city proved an additional incentive.
Probably the first foreign settlement was made in Egypt.
Desiring to control routes of trade in the valley of the Nile,
Tyrians obtained permission to settle in Memphis. This set-
tlement could hardly be called a colony in the ordinary sense
of the word, for the home city exercised no political control
over those of its subjects dwelling in Egypt — nor did it seek
to do so. Phoenicia excelled in trade — ^not government. With
this station at Memphis, Tyre was able to obtain not only
products of the valley but those also which were brought into
Egypt from the south. Ivory, ebony, skins, ostrich feathers,
grain, pottery, glass — ^these and other commodities here avail-
able were shipped away for consumption in Italy, Greece and
Asia Minor. The Egyptians, so resentful of foreigners ordi-
narily, appear to have found the Phoenicians unobjectionable
and of actual service to them. The little colony was allowed
to maintain its own customs, and it is supposed that a temple
sacred to Astoreth was erected here as early as 1250 b. c.
The islands west of Tyre were early peopled by Phoeni-
cians, or, at least, contained Phoenician settlements. Timber
suitable for ship-building was obtained in Cilicia, copper and
precious stones in Cyprus, pine lumber and figs in Rhodes.
Utica, on the Gulf of Tunis, was an early colony on the
African side of the Mediterranean. Coasting alone this shore,
the sea-farers came to Spain, where they established important
trading points. They penetrated as far west as the Corn-
wall mines, which supplied an inexhaustible amount of tin.
SOCIAI, UFS IN PHOENICIA. 39I
The islands off the Cornish coast they called the " Cassiterides "
or Tin Islands.
" Phoenician colonization — or colonization from Phoenicia
Proper — was in all probability limited within the extremes of
the Dardanelles to the north, Memphis to the south, and
Gadeira and the Cassiterides to the west. It was less widely
diffused than the Greek, and less generally spread over the
coasts accessible to it. With a few exceptions, the colonies
fall into three groups — first, those of the Eastern Mediter-
ranean and Aegean, beginning with Cyprus and terminating
with Cythera ; secondly those of the Central Mediterranean, in
North Africa, Sicily, and the adjacent islands; and thirdly,
those of the Western Mediterranean, chiefly on the south coast
of Spain, with perhaps a few on the opposite (African) shore.
The other settlements, commonly called Phoenician on the
eastern coast of Spain, in the Balearic Islands, in Corsica and
Elba; and again those on the Western Africa coast, between
the Straits of Gibraltar and the Cape de Verde, were Punic or
Carthaginian, rather than Phoenician."*
Finally something must be said of Carthage, for while her
palmy days as well as her decline, were closely related to
Roman history, her beginnings were inseparable with the
mother-country.
The word Carthage signifies New City, and the settlement
was so named in all probability to distinguish it from Utica,
founded 300 years before. 850 b. c. has been considered the
latest possible date for the founding of the town, while many
hold that it was settled as early as 1000 b. c. It matters little
which is accepted, since the place was neither strong nor in-
fluential for many years after either date. Its citizens came
originally from Tyre. The " New City " was built on what
is now the Bay of Tunis, a little to the north-west of the
present town of Tunis. Nothing, practically, is known of its
early history. Kings ruled at first, but were later abolished.
Polybius, a Greek historian, stated that he had seen a treaty
made betwen Rome and Carthage as early as 509 b. c, by
which the Carthaginians bound themselves not to injure any
Latin city while the Romans were pledged not to interfere
with Carthaginian markets in the western Mediterranean.
Because of its fortunate position the city became very pros-
»RawHnson : Phoenicia, 7L
392 THE world's progress.
perous. The Greeks tried to divert some of its trade into
their own channels, and later, Rome was its hated rival and
continued to struggle with the city until she effected its down-
fall.
" From the time when the first adventurers from the Syrian
coast entered the sheltered inlets of the African shore — a
remote period, even before Saul was made king of Israel and
while Priam sat on the throne of Troy — down to the seventh
century of the Christian era, when the Arabs passed over it
like a whirlwind, this land has been the battlefield where desti-
nies of nations have been sealed, and where heroes and war-
riors have sought their last resting place. The myths that
surround its earliest development and shed a halo of romance
over the career of its primitive races are somewhat obscured
by the sterner facts of later times — ^by wars innumerable, wars
of invasion and local disturbances, succeeded by a long period
of piracy and power insured, and finally by neglect, abandon-
ment, and decay. The legend of Dido still hangs over Carth-
age hill. The spirit of Haijnibal haunts the fateful Zanca, and
the banks of the Midjerda hold in everlasting memory the
story of Regulus and his affrighted array. The air is full of
myths and old-world stories which faithfully represent the
traditions of the country in its varying fortunes ; and slight as
may be their connection with events in prehistoric times, yet
they serve as foundations for a historic superstructure of never-
failing interest. The earliest records are fragmentary, but
we learn that the library of the Carthaginians, written in
Phoenician characters, was presented by the Romans, after
the fall of Carthage, to one of the kings of Numidia; and
that Sallust, as pro-consul of that province in the time of
Julius Caesar, borrowed largely from it while writing his his-
tory of the Jugarthine war. . . . There is little doubt,
however, that most of the earliest records passed to Alexandria,
which became the rival of Athens as a seat of learning. With
the burning of its library by the fanatical Arabs in the seventh
century many a link betwen the old world and the new was
severed, and reliable information concerning the laws and
traditions, and the manners and customs of a people, who were
the fathers of navigation and the founders of commerce, was
swept away."*
• Graham : Roman Africa, preface.
SOCIAL UFE IN PHOENICIA.
393
Phoenician commerce was facilitated by the establishment
of many out-posts, and while none other reached such size
and importance as Carthage, several controlled routes which
were almost as valuable. No modern account of that vast
commerce approaches the one written long ago by the prophet
Ezekiel, when Tyre was, or had just been, at the zenith of her
power.
" O thou that dwellest at the entry of the sea, which art
the merchant of the people unto many isles, O Tyre, thou hast
said : * I am of perfect beauty.'
" Thy borders are in the midst of the seas, thy builders
have perfected thy beauty. They have made all thy ship
boards of fir trees of Senir: they have taken cedars from
Lebanon to make masts for thee. Of the oaks of Bashan
have they made thine oars ; the company of the Ashurites have
made thy benches of ivory, brought out of the isles of Chittim.
Fine linen with broidered work from Egypt was that which
thou spreadest forth to be thy sail ; blue and purple from the
isles of Elishah was that which covered thee.
" The inhabitants of Sidon and Arvad were thy mariners :
thy wise men, O Tyre, that were in thee, were thy pilots.
" The ancients of Gabal and the wise men thereof were in
thee thy calkers: all the ships of the sea with their mariners
were in thee lo occupy thy merchandise. They of Persia and
of Lud and of Phut were in thine army, thy men of war : they
hanged the shield and helmet in thee ; they set forth thy come-
liness. . . .
" Tarshish was thy merchant by reason of all kinds of
riches; with silver, iron, tin and lead, they traded in thy fairs.
"Javan, Tubal, and Meshech, they were thy merchants:
they traded the persons of men and vessels of brass in thy
market. They of the house of Togarmah traded in thy fairs
with horses and horsemen and mules. The men of Dedan
were thy merchants ; many isles were the merchandise of thine
hand: they brought thee for a present horns of ivory and
ebony. Syria was thy merchant by reason of the multitude
of the wares of thy making: they occupied in thy fairs with
emeralds, purple, and broidered work, and fine linen, and
coral, and agate.
" Judah, and the land of Israel, they were thy merchants:
T— 27
394 THi? w grind's progress.
they traded in thy market wheat of Minnith, and Pannag,
and honey, and oil, and balm. Damascus was thy merchant
in the multitude of the wares of thy making, for the multitude
of all riches; in the wine of Helbon, and white wool. Dan
also and Javan going to and fro occupied in thy fairs ; bright
iron, cassia, and calamus, were in thy market. Dedan was
thy merchant in precious cloths for chariots. Arabia, and
all the princes of Kedar, they occupied with thee in lambs, and
rams, and goats : in these were they thy merchants. The mer-
chants of Sheba and Raamah . . . occupied in thy fairs
with chief of all spices, and with all precious stones, and gold.
" Haran, and Canneh, and Eden, the merchants of Sheba,
Asshur, and Chilmad, were thy merchants. These were thy
merchants in all sorts of things, in blue clothes, and broidered
work, and in chests of rich apparel, bound with cords, and
made of cedar, among thy merchandise. The ships of Tar-
shish did sing of thee in thy market : and thou wast made very
glorious in the midst of the seas. . . .
" When thy wares went forth out of the seas, thou filledst
many people ; thou didst enrich the kings of the earth with the
multitude of thy riches and of thy merchandise." '
The produce of the ancient world passed through routes
controlled by Phoenicia, and she acted as middleman in its
distribution. Commerce was of two kinds, overland, and by
sea. Traffic by water greatly exceeded that by land, yet both
were necessary and were mutually dependent upon one an-
other.
The products of interior Asia were brought, then as now,
by caravans. Even today it is possible to see trains of cara-
vans similar to those in the service of ancient Tyre, laden with
costly wares, crossing the desert. Not only were spices and
wares of Western Asia taken to Phoenician sea-ports for dis-
tribution, but Mesopotamia was supplied with articles from
Europe and Africa by the same overland travel.
" Imagine the arrival of a Tyrian caravan at Babylon. The
travellers have been on the march for three or four months.
. . . They have arrived weary, dusty, travel-stained.
Their tents are pitched outside the town, not far from th^
banks of the river, or of a water-course derived from it, un»ler
"Ezekiel, 27.
SOCIAL LIFE IN PHOENICIA. 395
the pleasant shadow of a grove of palms, near the northern
gate of the great city. The tall necks of their camels are seen
from a distance by the keen-eyed watchers of the gate-towers,
and reported by them to the civic authorities, whence the secret
soon oozes out and creates a bustle in the town. All are
anxious to obtain some object of their desire from the long
expected traders; but especially anxious are the great store-
keepers and shopkeepers, who look to the occasion for the re-
plenishing of their stock-in-trade for the next six months,
or, it may be, even for the next year. But the weary travel-
lers must have a night's rest ere they can be ready to open their
market, must unload their camels and their mules, dispose
their bales of goods as seems most convenient, and prepare
themselves for the fatigues of commercial dealing by a light
supper and a sound sleep ensuing thereupon. How glad are
the camels to have the loads removed from their galled backs,
to repose their weary limbs upon the green grass of the yellow
sand, and to lay their tired necks along the ground! Not a
moan is heard, scarcely a grunt, unless it be one of satisfaction.
The mules, and the camels, and the horses of the wealthier
sort, enjoy themselves equally. We hear the tinkling of their
bells, as they shake themselves, freed from all their trappings
but the head stall. Some are picketed about where the turf
is richest, others contentedly munch the barley that has been
placed before them in portable mangers, to reward them for
the toils that they have gone through. Many prefer sleep-
ing to eating, and, leaving their food untouched, stretch them-
selves upon the sward. Night falls— the stars come out— the
traders sleep in their tents, with a stone or a bale of goods
for their pillow — a profound hush sinks upon the camp, except
for the occasional squeal of a skittish pair of mules, which
have exchanged bites under cover of the darkness.
"The camp, however, wakes up with the first gleam of
dawn in the eastern sky. Each man busily sets about his
proper work. IMules and horses are groomed and are
arranged in rows, with their mangers in front, and their pack-
saddles and trappings near at hand. Bales of goods are
opened, and a display made of a portion of their contents.
Meantime, the town gates have been unclosed, and in holiday
apparel a' gay crowd streams forth from them. Foremost
396 THE worIwD's progress.
come the loafers, hoping to make an honest penny by * lending
a hand,' or to make a dishonest one by filching some unguarded
article. Then follow the ordinary customers and the petty
traders whose arrangements have not been made beforehand.
The last to appear are the agents of the great merchants, whose
correspondents at Tyre have made them consignments of
goods and sent the goods by the caravan to their destination;
these clamor for invoices and bills of lading. But the noisiest
and most pressing are the petty traders and the mere chance cus-
tomers, who have a special need to supply, or covet a good bar-
gain. With them what a chaffering there is ! What a scream-
ing and apparent quarrelling ! One buyer wants a purple robe
for half its value, another a Damascene blade for next to noth-
ing, a third, a Greek statuette for half a shekel of silver. The
seller asks at least four times the sum that he intends to take ;
the buyer exclaims, swears perhaps by the beard of his grand-
father that he will not give a farthing more than he has offered ;
then relents, and doubtless doubles his bid; the seller comes
down a little, but they are still * miles apart,' so to speak ; it
takes an hour of talking, swearing, screaming, raving, before
the juste milieu is hit off, an agreement come to, and buyer
and seller alike made happy by a conviction on the part of
each that he has over-reached the other." *
The companion picture to the caravan would be the
merchant vessel on the seas, together with the eager anticipa-
tion that attended its arrival in port. The earliest portrayal
of Phoenician boats show them to have been provided with
oars and sails. From small crafts, partially cabined, built
of unseasoned timber and poorly caulked, were gradually
evolved the stately biremes, perfect in construction and equip-
ment. The testimony of an eye-witness is vastly preferable
to descriptions of moderns, however scholarly. The follow-
ing description of Xenophon, a Greek general who often saw
Phoenician vessels, contains valuable information regarding
the degree of skill reached by these sea-farers in the equipment
of their ships:
" I think that the best and most perfect arrangement of
things which I ever saw was when I went to look at the great
Phoenician sailing vessel : for I saw the largest amount of naval
< Rawlinson : Phoenicia, 157, ff.
SOCIAL We% IN PHOENICIA. 397
tackling separately disposed in the smallest stowage possible.
For a ship, as you well know, is brought to anchor, and again
got under way, by a vast number of wooden implements, and
of ropes, and sails the sea by means of a quantity of rigging,
and is armed with a number of contrivances against hostile
vessels, and carries about with it a large supply of weapons
for the crew, and, besides, has all the utensils that a man keeps
in his dwelling-house, for each of the messes. In addition, it
is loaded with a quantity of merchandise, which the owner
carries with him for his own profit. Now all the things which
I have mentioned lay in a space not much bigger than a room
that would conveniently hold ten beds. And I remarked that
they severally lay in such a way that they did not obstruct one
another, and did not require any one to look for them, and
yet they were neither placed at random, nor entangled one
with another, so as to consume time when they were suddenly
wanted for use. Also I found the captain's assistant, who is
called the * look-out-man,' so well acquainted with the position
of all the articles, and with the number of them, that even
when at a distance he would tell where everything lay, and
how many there were of each sort. Moreover, I saw this
man, in his leisure moments, examining and testing everything
that a vessel needs when at sea ; so, as I was surprised, I asked
him what he was about, whereupon he replied, * Stranger, I
am looking to see, in case anything should happen, how every-
thing is arranged in the ship, and whether anything is want-
ing or is inconveniently situated; for when a storm arises
at sea, it is not possible either to look for what is wanting, or to
put to rights what is arranged awkwardly.'
One mast and one sail seem to have been commonly used.
The biremes and triremes were so-called because of their two
or three banks of oars. The oarsmen sat in the hold, their
oars passing through the vessel's side.
Phoenician traffic was always most extensive by sea.
Products of Egypt, Greece, Cyprus, Carthage, Spain, Britain,
besides those of countless islands, were transported constantly
by water.
eXenophon: Aeconom., VIII., 11
39^ THE wori^d's progress.
The Approach of a Caravan.
" When spring-time flushes the desert grass,
Our kafilas wind through the Khyber Pass.
Lean are the camels, but fat the frails,
Light are the purses but heavy the bales,
As the snow-bound trade of the North comes down
To the market-square of Peshawur town.
In a turquoise twilight, crisp and chill,
A kafila camped at the foot of the hill.
Then blue smoke-haze of the cooking rose.
And tent-peg answered to hammer-nose.
And the picketed ponies shag and wild.
Strained at their ropes as the feed was piled ;
And the bubbling camels beside the load
Sprawled for a furlong adown the road;
And Persian pussy-cats, brought for sale.
Spat at the dogs from the camel-bale;
And the tribesmen bellowed to hasten the food;
And the camp-fires twinkled by Fort Junrood;
And there fled on the wings of the gathering dusk
A savour of camels and carpets and musk,
A murmur of voices, a reek of smoke.
To tell us the trade of the Khyber woke."
— Kipling: Ballad of the King's J<est.
SOCIAI, UFE IN PHOENICIA. 399
CHAPTER IV.
Occupations and Industries.
Of first concern among the industries of Phoenicia were
her maritime activities. While many Phoenician voyages led
from island to island, and from one port to another almost
in sight, nevertheless the sailors frequently made trips that
necessitated their steering away from the shore, and ventur-
ing out into the open sea. They probably made charts of the
sea and acquired some elementary knowledge of nautical
affairs. Their greatest undertaking was the circumnaviga-
tion of Africa. This was attempted when Neccho was
pharaoh of Egypt and held Western Asia in temporary tribute.
Hoping to find a water communication between the Red Sea
and the Mediterranean, he engaged Phoenician seamen to sail
around Africa. Three years were consumed in the journey,
since they had to land each year and grow food sufficient for
the continuance of their voyage. When they returned, through
the Straits of Gibraltar, they reported that the sun had been
upon their right hand throughout the trip, which, Herodotus
said : " others may perhaps believe, though I certainly do not."
Little attention was given the matter until scholars began to
investigate the possibility of the earth's rotundity, whereupon
the information so long cast aside was once more noted.
For the most part it is probably true that the art of navi-
gation was but crudely developed, compared with the progress
reached later by the Greeks. Yet the Greeks themselves were
indebted to some extent to the earliest seamen of unquestioned
courage and venturesome spirit.
Of most vital importance were Phoenicia's activities in
commerce and trade, to quite a degree dependent upon her con-
trol of the sea.
" Gather now an idea of Phoenicia in the days of her great-
est power. Station yourself upon the rocky island of Tyre,
and turn your eyes toward the west. Were your vision power-
ful enough, you might see the towers of Phoenician settle-
ments dotting the Grecian seas and lining the coast of Africa.
Meeting for a moment at the Strait of Gibraltar, again the
two lines would diverge to the north and to the south, encom-
400 THE world's progress.
passing the known seas. Turn now to the east, and you be-
hold the caravans extending in long dark lines to the north
and to the south. At the extremities of the Lebanon moun-
tains, crossing the ridge, the lines divide and subdivide, like
streams toward their sources, until they penetrate and per-
meate the jungles of India and the valleys of the Himalayas.
Such was Phoenicia in her palmy days, garnering and distribut-
ing the produce and riches of the world." *
Farming was also important. Products raised within
Phoenicia were used chiefly for home consumption. Orchards,
gardens, and grain-fields yielded abundant returns and pro-
vided the food supply of the population, save for fish, and
such articles of luxury as were demanded by the citizens of the
wealthy ports. The country was too small and its arable
acreage too limited to admit of extensive agricultural pursuits.
While the manufactories of the country were less im-
portant, they had an important place. Phoenicia was widely
famed for the production of four distinct articles, in the mak-
ing of which her people excelled. First of these was a purple
dye. Other nations attempted to provide the same commodity
but never equalled the perfection of the Tyrian dye. Large
quantities of shell-fish yielding the precious fluid from which
it was made, were found off the Tyrian coast. They were of
two species. A little sac containing a creamy secretion was
opened in one, and the fluid carefully extracted. The other
was ground up, shell and all. Both were necessary to pro-
duce the beautiful tints peculiar to Phoenician cloths.
Their special processes of dyeing, exposing the materials
to the different degrees of light while drying, as well as the
chemical employed to make the colors fast, were secrets well
guarded, so that no imitation could deceive when compared to
the splendid purples of Tyre. Since dress fabrics and material
for covering furniture were most desired in rich and costly
hues, raw wool was extensively imported and woven to meet
the ever increasing demand. Dress stuffs from Phoenicia were
prized as booty or as tribute by the several countries which
at different periods exacted homage from Tyre and vSidon.
Sidon was /amous for her glassware. Pliny the Elder,
a Roman who wrote on History and Science during the first
> Bouphton : History of Ancient Peoples.
SOCIAI, LIFE IN PHOENICIA. 4OI
century of the Christian era, gave the tradition current in
his day concerning the so-called " discover>- of glass."
" It is said that some Phoenician merchants, having landed
on the shores of the river Belus, were preparing their meal,
and not finding suitable stones for raising their saucepans,
they used lumps of natrum contained in their cargo for the
purpose. When the natrum was exposed to the action of the
fire, it melted into the sand lying on the banks of the river,
and they saw transparent streams of some unknown liquicl
trickling over the ground ; this was the origin of glass." ' At
least the tale is reasonable, and might have been the experience
of people at different times. At all events, the art becoming
known to the Phoenicians, they attained notable skill in imi-
tating precious stones in colored glass. It was their experience
that trinkets, such as beads, were in great favor among half-
civilized tribes with whom they traded, and the satisfaction
was mutual when a few strings of glass beads had been ex-
changed for skins, ivory and even gold. It is now believed
that some of the rare glass-ware, treasured as Grecian in
museums today, was really produced in Sidon.
Articles fashioned of gold, silver and other metals were
especially attractive. Such bits of jewelry as have been dis-
covered— necklaces, bracelets, and rings, give evidence of a
high degree of workmanship. Bowls, goblets, and dishes were
elaborately wrought from metals, and while the decorative
designs upon them were often borrowed from the Greeks or the
Egyptians, the original was frequently improved upon. The
following lines from the Iliad show how bits of Phoenician
work were treasured among the Hellenes :
" And then the son of Peleus placed in sight
Prizes of swiftness, — a. wrought silver cup
That held six measures, and in beauty far
Excelled all others known; the cunning hands
Of the Sidonian artisans have given
Its graceful shape, and over the dark sea
Men of Phoenicia brought it, with their wares,
To the Greek harbors ; Achilles now
Brought it before the assembly as a prize,
For which, in honor of the friend he loved,
The swiftest runners of the host should strive."
402 THE WORIvD'S progress.
Hebrew chroniclers have described the decoration of Solo-
mon's temple — all wrought by Phoenician skill :
" And King Solomon sent and fetched Hiram out of Tyre.
He was a widow's son, . . . and his father was a man
of Tyre, a worker in brass: and he was filled with wisdom
and understanding, and cunning to work all works in brass.
And he came to King Solomon, and wrought all his work.
" For he cast two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high
apiece : and a line of twelve cubits did compass either of them
about. And he made two capitals of molten brass, to set
upon the tops of the pillars: the height of the one capital was
five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five cubits.
And nets of checker work, and wreaths of chain work, for
the capitals which were upon the top of the pillars, seven for
one capital and seven for the other capital. And he made the
pillars, and two rows round about upon the one network, to
cover the capitals that were upon the top, with pomegranates :
and so did he for the other capital. And the capitals that were
upon the top of the pillars were of lily work in the porch, four
cubits. . . . And he set up the pillars in the porch of
the temple: and he set up the right pillar and called the name
thereof Jachin: and he sat up the left pillar and called the
name thereof Boaz. And upon the top of the pillars was lily
work : so was the work of the pillars finished.
" And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from one brim to
the other: it was round all about, and its height was five
cubits : and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about.
And under the brim of it round about there were knobs com-
passing it. . . . It stood upon twelve oxen, three look-
ing toward the north, and three looking toward west, and
three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the
east: and the sea was set above them, and all their hinder
parts were inward. And it was an hand breadth thick, and the
brim thereof was wrought like the brim of a cup, with flowers
of lilies : it contained two thousand baths. . . . So Hiram
made an end of doing all the work that he made King Solomon
for the house of the Lord." '
The Phoenicians never developed an imposing architecture.
Timber was abundant on the mountain slopes, and was the
» I. Kings, 7.
SOCIAL LIFE IN PHOENICIA. 403
principal building material. The great lack of architectural
ruins in the country today may be largely accounted for by
its perishability. Stone was also available, and appears to
have been used chiefly for foundations, which were laid deep
and skillfully constructed. City walls were built of stone,
and a few remnants of these may yet be found. Gigantic
stones of prodigious size were piled one upon another and often
held in place by their own tremendous weight. In places
where the solid blocks were joined together, they were united
so evenly that the blade of a knife may not now be placed
in the seam.
Tyre and Sidon were both beautiful cities, as abundant
evidence goes to testify. Carthage with her great structures
of stone, became a quarry for Italy, but the Phoenicians were
imitators and never developed a distinctive style of building.
Their sculpture survives only in tombs. A few of these
have been recovered. Some of the figures adorning the in-
teriors of tombs are said to possess richness and beauty.
Their artists made use of huge blocks, and for this reason
their carving was in low relief, or gave such appearance. The
Greeks, on the other hand, found gigantic blocks unwieldy,
and took smaller stones for their embellishment. Consequently
the grace and delicacy of Greek sculpture was not reached
in Phoenicia.
" It seems strange that these Canaanites or Phoenicians,
the scorn of Israel, and the people against whom Joshua bent
all his powers, should have enjoyed such an uncheckered career,
making themselves sole navigators of every sea, and finally
founding a city which stod unrivalled for more than 700 years.
Through their hands . . . passed grain, ivory, and skins
from Libya; slaves from the Soudan, purple and cedar from
Tyre, frankincense from Arabia, copper from Cyprus, iron
from Elba, tin from Cornwall, wine from Greece, silver from
Spain, and gold and precious stones from Malabar. As a
nation of traders and navigators they established themselves
on the coast, and wherever they settled, depots and factories
of various kinds were erected. We do not find them in the
interior of a country. Neither do we hear of alliances with
the people with whom they came in contact, nor of their im-
pressing barbarian tribes with any notions of the advantages
404 THE world's progress.
of civilization. In the field of intellectual acquirements the
Carthaginian, as the descendant of the Phoenician, has no
place, and his skill in the gentler arts of life has no recognition.
We find no native architecture, nor do v^e hear of any in-
dustrial art worth recording. Carthage, it is true, became
the metropolis of their widespread kingdom, and one of the
wealthiest cities of the world. . . . Temples and stately
edifices adorned its streets, and the remains of great con-
structional works still attest the solid grandeur of the city.
But the architecture was the work of Greek, not of Punic,
artists ; and the few sculptures of note, which may be assigned
to a period anterior to the last Punic war, have nothing in
common with the rude carvings which bear the impress of
Carthaginian origin. On the other hand the art of naviga-
tion, the science of agriculture, the principles of trading, and
a system of water supply combined with the construction of
gigantic cisterns, which may still be seen at Carthage, and in
the outskirts of many towns in North Africa, became Rome's
heritage from Phoenicia." '
Literature and Learning.
Among the bequests of Phoenicia to mankind, first will
always stand the giving of an alphabet to the world. It is
true that other nations possessed a written language, but their
symbols were generally so complicated and so numerous that
they could hardly have become of general service. It was
earlier assumed that the Phoenicians invented the alphabet
which they spread among the nations around them, but now
it is believed that they simply shortened and simplified symbols
already in existence. Their alphabet was widely adopted, to
be sure, not because it was most convenient, but because it
was the only one known to many nations, who never came in
direct contact with dwellers on the Nile or Mesopotamians.
In Phoenicia's palmy days literature and learning were
neglected — at least so far as can now be ascertained. It is not
unlikely that scholars lived sometimes in the larger cities,
and schools were probably maintained to some extent, but at
all events, no remains of a Phoenician literature has come down
to us, and it has been commonly surmised that no extensive
« Graham : Roman Africa, 1, 2.
SOCIAL LIFE IN PHOENICIA. 405
literature ever existed. The nation was bent upon its com-
mercial life, and only such knowledge as would be essential
to traders was regarded as necessary. In later times, in the
last century before Christ and in the first century of the new
era, literary activity was more marked. We are told that there
was a school of philosophy at Sidon, and the city became a
literary center, but this had little to do with the period of
Phoenician ascendency which practically ended with Greek
dominance.
Religion.
Somewhat more is known of the religion of Phoenicia, but
here again we are not able to trace its development in any
complete sense, and most that has been recorded concerning
it was written by foreigners whose attitude was uniformly
hostile.
It is now supposed by some scholars that the Phoenician
religion was at first monotheistic, and that later the worship
of many gods was common. The third stage in its progress
would be the greater portion of the period known to us, when
the gods of other peoples were allowed, by the side of those
native to the country. In Carthaginian tombs images of
Egyptian deities have been found side by side with those of
ancient Tyre and Sidon. In the beginning, the Phoenician
worship was probably one manifestation of the Sun-worship,
common to Semitic peoples. The religion of any people is a
matter of growth, invariably undergoing change, until it finally
resembles but slightly what it was in the beginning. Thus
the faith of Phoenicia underwent many changes during her
1500 years. It is agreed that the Phoenicians worshipped
curiously shaped stones at an early period, believing that deities
had their abode within them ; plants also were importuned,
to appease the spirit that dwelt within them and cause each
to yield food. Finally the heavenly bodies became objects of
worship, the sun being considered most important. There
must always be something appealing in the adoration felt by
primitive minds toward the sun. Most ancient people wor-
shipped it in one form or another, and the planet was sur-
rounded by unfathomable mystery in the infancy of the world.
Baal was god of the sun, Astoreth, goddess of the moon.
4o6 THE world's progress.
Baal symbolized the life-giving power of the sun as well as its
destructive forces.
Maleck or Molock was the god of fire. He was a god of
cruelty and thirsted for blood. It was to satisfy some of his
supposed cravings that the human sacrifices took place. The
first-born child, pure maidens, favorite sons, were fed to the
flames to appease his wrath. These sacrifices seem strange to
us today, and nations of antiquity, immuned to cruelty and
bloodshed, turned from these Phoenician customs in horror.
An annual spring festival of great antiquity was celebrated.
Probably in early times it lacked the feature of the human
sacrifice which made it most objectionable later. Great forest
trees were brought into the temple court and planted. From
their branches were suspended animals, birds and all else in-
tended for the sacrifice. After the images of the gods were
marched around these trees, all was set on fire and consumed
in a mighty conflagration. To make the celebration more im-
pressive, human sacrifices were added, especially before some
great undertaking, or upon the occasion of some national
calamity.
Astoreth was the great virgin goddess. In the beginning,
she was worshipped with simple rites.
"Astoreth, whom the Phoenicians called
Astarte, queen of heaven, with crescent horns ;
To whose bright image nightly by the moon
Sidonian virgins paid their vows and songs."
In course of time the character of the goddess changed,
and she was worshipped by most licentious practices.
In addition to their own gods, the Phoenicians readily
incorporated into their pantheon deities of those tribes and
nations with whom they opened trade. Some years after
Phoenicia ceased to be a power, a Carthaginian general made
a treaty with the Emperor of Greece. The two are reported
to have sworn by numerous deities that they would preserve
it. " They swore by Zeus, Hera, and Apollo, by the tutelary
deities of the Carthaginians, by Hercules, by the moon, and
the earth, by rivers, meadows, and waters, by the gods of the
allied armies, and the sun, by all the gods who ruled over
Carthage, by all the gods who ruled over Macedon and the
SOCIAL LIFE IN PHOENICIA. 4O7
rest of Greece, and by all the gods of those who were present
to ratify the treaty."
At first the Phoenicians worshipped in the open air, with
merely an altar of stone. Later they built elaborate and costly
temples, but they still celebrated certain ceremonies out of
doors, in groves or under the shade of trees.
The religion of the Phoenicians was most innocent and
attractive in its earliest stages. As it developed, with its
numerous priesthood performing their bloody rites, and its
necessary sacrifices, teaching cruelty and blunting the sensi-
bilities of its adherents, it became very repulsive. Far from
inculcating noble ideals, it made a virtue of renouncing dear
ones to agony and death ; and a people who from infancy grew
accustomed to such scenes and such conceptions could never
develop finest qualities of character. Wherever Phoenician
vessels landed with their wares, there Phoenician gods and
practices went also. The good done in spreading the habits
of civilization to regions remote was mitigated by the harm
done in spreading this abhorrent faith.
Several Greek myths tell of maidens being sacrificed to
some monster, such, for example, as Theseus and The Minotaur.
These are believed to have had their origin in rumors of Phoe-
nician sacrifices. The stories reached the shores of Greece
in various forms and with the aid of Greek imaginations were
woven into the tales as we know them.
SHELLS OF THE SEA SNAIL FROM WHICH THE PURPLE DVE WAS MADE.
408 TUZ WORIJ)'S PROGRESS.
CHAPTER V.
The Physical Geography oe Palestine.
It is essential that the student of Hebrew history under-
stand the topography of Palestine, wherein the nation devel-
oped. Names of rivers, mountains, cities, in this historic land
grow familiar from frequent repetition in the Bible, but where
each was located, and what was its position relative to other
oft-mentioned spots, are queries left unsettled by the average
reader. Still more necessary is a general idea of the country
as a whole, because the very formation of the land determined
in a large measure the destiny of those who dwelt within it.
Palestine is bounded on the north by the base of the
Lebanons, on the east by the Arabian desert, on the south by
the Wilderness of Judah — an extension of this desert — , and
on the west by the Mediterranean Sea below Mount Carm.el,
while north of this mighty mountain the Phoenicians held
the coast, although the Hebrews occupied the province of
Galilee, east of the Phcenician shore.
This celebrated land is scarcely more than 150 miles in
length, and approximates 100 miles in breadth, yet every
known variety of climate may be found within its confines.
From regions lying 1300 feet below sea-level, with heat of
the tropics, mountains rise to 9000 feet above the sea, with
Alpine snows and cold.
Palestine, like Greece or Switzerland, falls naturally into
many small divisions, each shut off in a measure from the
rest. This explains how it was possible for the Hebrews to
occupy a considerable portion of the land while the Canaanites,
earlier inhabitants of the country, remained undisturbed in
other localities. It also explains the fact that for many years
some of the Hebrews dwelt in tents and clung to their nomadic
customs while no great distance away others of their kinsmen
cultivated the vine and tilled the soil.
While the shore of the Mediterranean was broken by sev-
eral harbors along the Phoenician coast, south of Mount
Carmel the shore reaches in a nearly straight line to Egypt.
THE STORY OE THE HEBREWS. 4O9
No havens invite ships to safety; no islands dot the rocky
shore. To the Hebrew the sea was a frontier rather than a
means for outside communication. So inhospitable was this
coast that invasions of Palestine were made by land rather
than sea. A rocky line of cliffs varying from thirty to one
hundred feet makes landing impossible save at two or three
artificially constructed modern ports.
Six distinct land features are to be found in Palestine and
deeply affected the people who dwelt there in antiquity. First
of these is .the Coast Plain, varying in width from two hun-
dred yards to thirty miles. The northern portion of it was
known as the Plain of Sharon; the southern portion, as the
Plain of Philistia. The word Sharon signifies " forest," and
in an early day a dense wood of oaks covered the region and
gave it this name. Only in the north has the forest been
perpetuated to our day. The plain was formerly, and is still,
productive. It contains gardens, orchards, and grain fields.
Lacking the inspiring beauty of the high tablelands, it pos-
sesses a quiet charm of its own. Farther south, the Plain of
Philistia stretches off in the direction of Egypt.
This Coast Plain, falling for the most part into these two
smaller plains, has been a continuation of the great highway
between Egypt and Syria, and a famous war-path. For
Egypt particularly, it was a simple matter to dispatch troops
along the shore, to strike terror to less inaccessible inland
districts. Today it lies in peaceful cultivation or in wood-
lands of low undergrowth.
" The whole Maritime Plain possesses a quiet but rich
beauty. If the contours are gentle the colors are strong and
varied. Along almost the whole seaboard runs a strip of links
and downs, sometimes of pure drifting sand, sometimes of
grass and sand together. Outside this border of broken gold
there is the blue sea, with its fringe of foam. Landward the
soil is a chocolate brown, with breaks and gullies, now bare
to their dirty white shingle and stagnant puddles, and now
full of rich green reeds and rushes that tell of ample water
beneath. Over corn and moorland a million flowers are
scattered — poppies, pimpernels, anemones, the convolvulus
and the mallow, the narcissus and blue iris — roses of Sharon
and lilies of the valley. Lizards haunt all the sunny banks.
1—28
410 THE world's progress.
The shimmering air is filled with bees and butterflies, and with
the twittering of small birds, hushed now and then as the
shadow of a great hawk blots the haze. The soft night is
sprinkled thick with glittering fireflies." '
Passing the sea and the Coast Plain, the Central Range
rises high and extends throughout the entire length of Pales-
tine, with some variations. In this great tableland lay the
famous kingdom of the Hebrews — Judaea and Samaria.
Judaea lay farther to the south and was separated from the
Coast Plain by the Shephelah — a series of low foot-hills. The
Hebrews built their western cities on these low hills rather
than along the shore. In fact the frequent attacks of the
Philistines left the Coast Plain only now and then in the
hands of the Hebrews.
The word Shephelah has been thought to signify lowlands,
and may have been applied in contrast to the highlands farther
east. Ranging from five to fifteen miles in width, this ele-
vated strip was the scene of constant warfare between the
Hebrews and Philistines. Numerous valleys led across it,
Ajalon being perhaps most famous.
" The prevailing scenery of the region is of short, steep
hillsides and narrow glens, with a very few great trees, and
thickly covered by brushwood and oak-scrub — crags and scalps
of limestone breaking through, and a rough grey torrent-bed
at the bottom of each glen. . . . Caves, of course, abound
— near the villages, gaping black dens for men and cattle,
but up the unfrequented glens they are hidden by hanging
bush, behind which you disturb only the wild pigeon. Bees
murmur everywhere, larks are singing; and although in the
maze of hills you may wander for hours without meeting a
man, or seeing a house, you are seldom out of sound of the
human voice, shepherds and ploughmen calling to their cattle
and to each other across the glens. Higher up you rise to
moorlands, with rich grass if there is a spring, but otherwise,
heath, thorns, and rough herbs that scent the wind. Bees
abound here, too, and dragon-flies, kites and crows; some-
times an eagle floats over the cliffs of Judaea. The sun beats
strong, but you see and feel the sea; the high mountains are
1 George Adam Smith : Historical Geography of the Holv Land, 14S.
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 4II
behind, at night they breathe upon these ridges gentle breezes,
and the dews are very heavy.
" Altogether it is a rough, happy land, with its glens and
moors, its mingled brushwood and barley-fields; frequently
under cultivation, but for the most part broken and thirsty,
with few wells and many hiding places; just the home for
strong border-men, like Samson, and just the theatre for that
guerilla warfare, varied occasionally by pitched battles, which
Israel and Philistia, the Maccabees and the Syrians, waged
with each other." '
At last the foot-hills merge into lofty mountains and series
of plateaus, or table-lands, surrounded by high peaks, appear.
Here was Judaea, the true home of the Hebrews. Farther
north, and rising directly from the Coast Plain, without the
intervening foot-hills, was Samaria. The physical outlines
of this long, narrow range determined in advance that it would
not permanently be politically united.
Judaea was quite secure in her mountain heights. On the
east her mountains descend abruptly to the lower Jordan and
the Dead Sea; on the south lies the desert; on the east the
low foot-hills, and on the north the table-land ends in ten
miles of wild, waste land. " A desolate, fatiguing extent of
rocky platforms and ridges, or moorland strewn with boulders,
and fields of shallow soil thickly mixed with stone, they are
a true border — more fit for the building of barriers than for
the cultivation of food."
Some parts of this stony plateau were fit for cultivation,
but for the most part, Judaea was a pastoral land — a country
of shepherds and herdsmen. Flocks of sheep fed on the moor-
lands in ancient times, as they do today. Water has always
been scanty and is preserved in wells and cisterns for the cattle
during months of drouth.
Samaria possesses softer outlines and is a land beautified
by nature. As Judaea was isolated and secure in her natural
boundaries, so was Samaria open to approach. The " open-
ness " of the land is constantly dwelt upon by those who pic-
ture its location. It was difficult to resist invasion and
Samaria was attacked much more often than her sister to the
south. Samaria was a fruitful land, yielding to cultivation;
a George Adam Smith': Historical Geography of the Holy Land,208.
412 THE WORI^D'S progress.
she lay open to influences on every hand, and was the first to
receive fresh impulses and ideas. " Today, amid the peace-
ful beauty of the scene — ^the secluded vale covered with corn
fields, through which the winding streams flash and glisten
into the hazy distance, and the gentle hill rises without a
scarp to the olives waving on its summit — it is possible to
appreciate Isaiah's name for Samaria, the crown of pride of
Bphraim, the Hower of his glorious beauty which is on the
head of the fat valley/' '
East of both countries and the Central Range which con-
tained them, flows the Jordan. Geological ages ago it is
supposed that a great sea occupied the valley of the Jordan
and the regions on either side. Beneath its deep waters, layers
of limestone accumulated. In course of time, mighty convul-
sions within the earth hurled these layers of rock in twain and
threw them up on both sides, until the present mountain ranges
were formed. At the same time a series of rocks were cast
up diagonally across this region to the south, thus enclosing
a portion of the salt waters within the basin so formed. Ages
of rain and of glaciers followed and when these abated, the
new surface was left to develop its system of drainage. The
situation at present is almost identical with that in early Bible
times. In the northern part of Palestine, at the base of the
Lebanons, a series of streams, mountain-born, take a south-
ernly direction and empty into a marshy pool known as Lake
Huleh; from the southern part of this lake the river Jordan
flows on to the Lake of Galilee, whence the stream once again
issues forth, this time down a steep incline, giving it rapid
impetus of motion, from whence comes its name: Jordan —
the Down-comer. At last its valley widens and by several
estuaries the river finally empties into the Dead Sea.
The beauty attending many rivers of the earth is lacking
in the Jordan. Cutting down its channels in a rift left already
deep by eruption, this valley lies deep below the sea-level and
is exceedingly hot. Malaria lurks in the jungles that border
the river-sides, and at no time has the region been thickly
populated. The river is not suited to irrigation, but certain
portions of the valley are watered by its tributaries sufficiently
to make gardens possible.
» George Adam Smith : Historical Geography of the Holy Land, 349.
THK STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 4I3
The Dead Sea occupies the lowest portion of the valley.
Soundings have shown it to be very deep. Not only are its
waters heavily charged with salt, but other chemicals make
yet more uninhabitable its basin. No fish or other form of
life lives in its waters, which possess remarkable clearness
and are intensely blue. Having no outlets save evaporation,
and lying where heat is great, the sea is like a mighty caldron!
above which a column of steam rises constantly. 6,000,000
tons of water are estimated to rise from it daily in the form
of vapor.
From its very nature, the Jordan was not a river to which
a nation might become devoted— as, for example, the Egyp-
tians were to their Nile. Nevertheless, no other stream has
become so embodied into literature, or so endeared to a great
religious world. The Hebrews regarded the Jordan as a
boundary — a frontier. Significant is the fact that when it
is mentioned in the Bible it is generally accompanied by some
word meaning over or across. Over Jordan, beyond the
stream which because of its fever-breeding, lion-populated
jungles and its strange sea, signified death, destruction, calam-
ity, rather than life. Beyond the Jordan, then, lay the
Promised Land, flowing with milk and honey.
East of the Jordan valley, the Eastern Range rises similarly
to the Central Range on the west side. The plateaus of Moab
and Gilead seem higher than the others, for whereas the Cen-
tral Range rises gradually from a series of foothills to its
exalted height, the Eastern Range rises abruptly from the
extremely low river-valley.
The Eastern Range is blessed with a temperate climate.
Heat is always moderated by breezes which bring health and
prosperity with them. The soil is fertile, sufficiently watered
and very productive. It is a region where agriculture and
grazing are followed, and natural conditions are favorable to
both occupations. In spite of these advantages, the region
lies exposed to the south and east. Desert tribes make life
and fortune uncertain for the inhabitants. Even today, when
conditions have been somewhat improved, those who grow
crops in this region must pay tribute to wandering tribes who
demand it, or lose their all. How much more precarious must
life have been in those days when even among the most en-
414 THE wori^d's progress,
lightened nations the hand of the plunderer was scarcely
restrained at all. The Hebrew tribes which settled this plateau
were in the beginning as strong as those that located farther
east, but they could not maintain their individuality against
the conditions that beset them. Sooner or later, they drifted
with the restless hordes and lost their identity.
One more natural division remains to be considered — the
Plain of Esdraelon. Triangular in shape, one point lies north
of Mt. Carmel, while the two long lines extend south-easterly,
and meet the third near the river Jordan. It was this famous
plain that gave access to the Central Range from the west —
from the Coast Plain, approach to Samaria was not difficult
by this means.
The region is rather made up of a series of plains, broken
by scattered mountains, yet permitting free passage from the
sea to the river Jordan. An ancient route lay along this way.
It has been called the key to Palestine, and over it came the
enemies of Israel. Especially interesting is the following
description, with the added explanation of a bit of ancient
Hebrew poetry characterizing the region:
" As you stand upon that last headland of Gilboa, 200 feet
above the plain, . . . the great triangle is spread before
you. Along the north of it the steep brown wall of the
Galilean hills, about 1000 feet high, runs almost due west,
till it breaks out and down to the feet of Carmel, in the forest
slopes just high enough to hide the Plain of Acre and sea.
But over and past these slopes Carmel's steady ridge, deepen-
ing in blue the while, carries the eye out to its dark pro-
montory above the Mediterranean. From this end of Carmel
the lower Samarian hills, green with bush and dotted by white
villages, run southeast to the main Samarian range, and on
their edge, due south, seven miles across the bay, Jenin stands
out with its minarets and palms. . . . But the rest of the
plain is before you — a great expanse of loam, red and black,
which in a more peaceful land would be one sea of waving
wheat with island villages; but here is what its modern name
implies, a free, wild prairie, upon which but one or two ham-
lets have ventured forth from the cover of the hills and a timid
and tardy cultivation is only now seeking to overtake the waste
of coarse grass and the thistly herbs that camels love. There
The story 0^ The Hebrews. 415
is no water visible. The Kishon itself flows in a muddy
trench, unseen five yards away. But here and there a clump
of trees shows where a deep well is worked to keep a little
orchard green through summer. . . . The roads have no
limit to their breadth, but sprawl, as if at most seasons one
caravan could not follow for mud on the path of another. But
these details sink in a great sense of space, and of a level made
almost absolute by the rise of hills on every side of it. It is a
vast inland basin, and from it there breaks just at your feet,
between Jezreel and Shunem, the valley Jordanwards, — breaks
as visibly as river from lake, with a slope and almost the look
of a current upon it. . . . From Jezreel you can appreciate
everything in the literature and in the history of Esdraelon.
" To begin with, you can enjoy that happiest sketch of a
landscape and its history that was ever drawn in half a dozen
lines, Issachar — to which the most of Esdraelon fell —
" Issachar is a large-limbed ass,
Stretching himself between the sheepfolds:
For he saw a resting-place that it was good,
And the land that it was pleasant.'
" Such exactly is Esdraelon — a land relaxed and sprawling
up among the hills to north, south and east, as you will see
a loosened ass roll and stretch his limbs any day in the sun-
shine of a Syrian village yard. To the highlander looking
down upon it, Esdraelon is room to stretch in and lie happy.
Yet the figure of the ass goes further — the room must be paid
for—
* So he bowed his shoulder to bear
And became a servant under task-work.'
" The inheritors of this plain never enjoyed the highland
independent of Manasseh or Naphtali. Open to east and west,
Esdraelon was at distant intervals the war-path or battle-field
of great empires. . . . Even when there has been no in-
vasion to fear, Esdraelon has still suffered : when she has not
been the camp of the foreigner she has served as the estate
of her neighbors." *
^George Adam Smith : Historical Geography of the Holy Land, 38L
4X6 TH^ "world's progress.
CuMAT^ "AND Productivity of Pai^estine.
As we might expect in a land possessing such a varied
topography, nearly every known climate is represented in
Palestine. Along the seashore the salt breezes of ocean blow ;
the climate of the Coast Plain is mild and pleasant, and favor-
able to the growth of gardens and orchards; within the Cen-
tral Range itself several varieties of climate prevail, and in
the low valley of the Jordan and in the region of the Dead
Sea, the heat of the tropics obtains. The plateaus of the
Eastern Range are visited by health-giving breezes, which
moderate the atmosphere. Farther east and south extends
the desert, with its parched sands and sultry air, yet in the
very sight of these desert wastes rise snowy mountain p^aks.
" There are palms in Jericho and pine forests in Lebanon.
In the Ghor, in summer, you are under a temperature of more
than 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and yet you see glistening the
snow-fields of Hermon. All the intermediate steps between
these extremes the eye can see at one sweep from Carmel —
the sands and palms of the coast; the wheat-fields of Esdraelon,
the oaks and sycamores of Galilee; the pines, the peaks, the
snows of Anti-Lebanon. How closely these differences lie
to each other! Take a section of the country across Judaea.
With its palms and shadoofs the Philistine Plain might be
a part of the Egyptian Delta; but on the hills of the Shep-
helah which overlook it, you are in the scenery of Southern
Europe ; the Judaean moors which overlook them are like the
barer uplands of Central Germany ; the shepherds wear sheep •
skin cloaks and live under stone roofs — sometimes the snow
lies deep; a few miles farther east and you are down on the
desert among the Bedouin, with their tents of hair and their
cotton clothing; a few miles farther still, and you drop to
torrid heat in the Jordan Valley; a few miles beyond that
and you rise to the plateau of the Belka, where the Arabs say
* the cold is always at home.' Yet from Philistia to the Belka
is scarcely seventy miles." '
The year is divided into a wet and a dry season. The
rains begin the last of October and are over by the last of
March. These are called the " early " rains in the Old Testa-
' George Adam Smith : Historical Geography of the Holy Land, 56.
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 4I7
mfint. Showers which fall in the late spring are called the
" latter " rains. From May until October the summer is dry.
The vegetation is sustained in many places by the heavy dews.
Water is not abundant and the rain-water which falls during
the winter months is stored in wells and cisterns for use in
the dry months.
Flowers of many varieties are found through the land
and range from those common to tropical and desert lands to
those native to high altitudes. As in Egypt the fertile land
borders upon the shifting desert sands, so in Palestine the
strong contrasts between the productive and waste lands is
the more marked because of their proximity.
Palestine is not a land of heavy forests. To be sure, ages
upon ages of habitation have divested many slopes of native
timber, but evidences go to show that at no time since records
began has the country been heavily forested. Today the wood-
lands are frequently mere undergrowth. Orchards are plenti-
ful. The olive is most widely cultivated; apricots, figs,
oranges, almond and walnut trees are grown, and the vine
is grown extensively. Grain fields wave on the plains, in the
valleys and lowlands, wheat, barley and millet being most abund-
ant. Vegetables of many varieties are commonly raised. Beans,
tomatoes, onions and melons are produced in large quantities.
Grass is grown only on small areas, pasturage being for the
most part found on the public land. During the summer
months pasturage exists only near the large fountains or the
carefully built cisterns. These are jealously guarded by their
owners. In earlier times and now, to some extent, wells and
pools are provided to preserve water falling during the winter,
and these are for the use of all who come to them with their
flocks and herds.
We find no such condition here as in Egypt, where crops
grow abundantly if the seeds be hut once dropped into the
ground. On the contrary, while grains, fruits and garden
produce are generally grown, care and constant industry are
required to bring forth good yields. Certain portions of the
country are adapted to the art of husbandry, while others
have always been better suited to cattle and sheep raising.
So much of the tablelands is rocky and stony and unsuited
for cultivation that no arable spots are allowed to go untended,
4i8 THE world's progress.
CHAPTER VI.
Efi^Ects of Geographicai, Conditions Upon the Hebrews.
Certain natural effects of the physical conditions upon the
people in Palestine have been apparent as we traced the gen-
eral land formation. It is evident that in an age when easy
communication was essential to union, there could be no politi-
cal unity among a people dwelling in a country so divided by
mountains, plains, and valleys. Again, we would expect
tribes settling the plateaus of the Central Range to develop
differently from those peopling the fertile plain of Sharon.
Indeed, within this range itself we have found that the inhabi-
tants of austere Judaea led a life unlike that of more accessible
Samaria. Other effects of natural conditions upon the
Hebrews are evident, as we shall see.
The very climate of Palestine seems to have had its in-
fluence in molding the religious thought of Israel. " The
climate of Palestine is regular enough to provoke men to
methodical labour for its fruits, but the regularity is often
interrupted. The early rains or the latter rains fail, drought
comes occasionally for two years in succession, and that means
famine and pestilence. There are too, the visitations of the
locust, which are said to be bad every fifth or sixth year, and
there are earthquakes, also periodical in Syria. Thus a purely
mechanical conception of nature as something certain and in-
evitable, whose processes are more or less under man's con-
trol, is impossible; and the imagination is roused to feel the
presence of a will behind nature, in face of whose interruptions
of the fruitfulness or stability of the land man is absolutely
helpless. To such a climate, then, is partly due Israel's doc-
trine of Providence." * In Deuteronomy the contrast between
Egypt, the land just left, and Palestine, to which Israel was
then passing, is drawn, and the price of prosperity definitely
given.
" But the land, whither thou goest in to possess it, is not
as the land of Egypt, from whence ye came out, where thou
1 Smith : Historical Geography of Holy Land, 73.
The story of The Hebrews. 419
sowedst thy seed, and wateredst it with thy foot, as a garden of
herbs : but the land, whither ye go to possess it, is a land of
hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of heaven.
A land which Jehovah thy God careth for : the eyes of Jehovah
thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year
even unto the end of the year.
" And it shall come to pass, if ye shall harken diligently
unto my commandments which I command you this day, to
love Jehovah your God, and to serve him with all your heart
and with all your soul, that I will give you the rain of your
land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that
thou mayest gather in thy com, and thy wine, and thine oil.
And I will send grass in thy fields for thy cattle, that thou
mayst eat and be full. Take heed to yourselves, that your
heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods,
and worship them; and then Jehovah's wrath be kindled
against you and he shut up the heaven, that the land yield not
her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land
which Jehovah giveth you." "
The productivity of the soil had two important results in
the development of the Hebrews. The first affected the very
nature of their being, for it changed them from desert nomads
into herders and small farmers. In place of the tent, they
adopted the house, the fixed habitation. Instead of wander-
ing from pasture to pasture with their cattle and families,
as they had done for generation upon generation before their
sojourn in Egypt, they cultivated the land and found it over-
flowing with " milk and honey." In the Song of Moses this
great transformation is pictured with vividness and beauty:
" Remember the days of old,
Consider the years of generation on generation.
Ask thy father and he will show thee,
Thine elders and they will tell thee.
When the highest gave nations their heritage,
When he sundered the children of men.
He set the border of the tribes.
By the number of the children of Israel.
For the portion of Jehovah is his people,
* Deuteronomy 11, 10.
420 THE world's PROGRKSS.
Jacob the measure of his heritage.
He found him in a land of the desert,
In a waste, in a howling wilderness.
He encompassed him. He distinguished him.
He watched him as the apple of His eye.
As an eagle stirreth his nest,
Fluttereth over his young,
Spreadeth abroad his wings, taketh them,
Beareth them up on his pinions,
Jehovah alone led him
And no strange god was with him.
He made him to ride on the Land's high places.
And to eat of the growth of the field.
He gave him to suck honey from the cliff.
And oil from the flinty rock.
Cream of kine and milk of sheep,
With lambs* fat and rams'
Breed of Bashan and he-goats,
With fat of the kidneys of wheat ;
And the blood of the grape thou drankest in foam ! "
While settlement in Palestine produced an advancement in
civilization, it brought at the same time a lower plane of
religious life and thought. With sudden plenty and no longer
enforced abstinence of the desert, came a certain confusion
and riot. The desert tends to inspire monotheistic ideas
and conceptions; lands of varied aspect, such as Greece or
Palestine, inspire polytheistic conceptions — divided power
rather than unity.
" The creed of the desert nomad is simple and austere —
for nature about him is monotonous, silent, and illiberal. But
Syria is a land of lavish gifts and oracles — where woods are
full of mysterious speech, and rivers burst suddenly from the
ground, where the freedom of nature excites, and seems to
sanction, the passions of the human body, where food is rich,
and men drink wine. The spirit and the senses are equally
taken by surprise. No one can tell how many voices a tretf
has who has not come up to it from the silence of the great
desert. . . ,
" But with the awe comes the sense of indulgence, and
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 421
the Starved instincts of the body break riotously forth. . . .
All this is said to have happened to Israel from almost their
first encampment in Canaan."
" They moved him to jealousy with strange gods,
With abominations provoked him to anger.
They sacrificed to monsters undivine,
Gods they had known not,
New things, lately come in,
Their fathers never had them in awe."
One more effect of physical conditions may be noted here,
leaving the rest to appear in connection with Israel's story —
namely, the effect of the picturesqueness of the land upon these
former desert nomads. For one who has made himself
familiar with the beautiful places of earth, Palestine has its
charm, but to people journeying thither from the wastes of
desert, the land possesses matchless beaut)*. Before calling
attention to the reflection of scener}^ to be found in ancient
Hebrew writings, let us read the description of certain aspects
of the country, as given by one who knows every foot of the
land and has watched it in and out of season.
" There is the coast-line from the headland of Carmel —
northwards the Gulf of Haifa, with its yellow sands and
palms, . . . southwards Sharon with her scattered forest,
her coast of sand and grass : westwards the green sea and the
wonderful shadows of the clouds upon it — grey when you
look at them with your face to the sun, but, with the sun be-
hind you, purple, and more like Homer's * wine-colored ' water
than anything I have seen on the Mediterranean. There is
the excellency of Carmel itself: wheat-fields climbing from
Esdraelon to the first bare rocks, then thick bush and scrub,
young ilex, wild olives and pines, with undergrowth of large
purple thistles, mallows with blossoms like pelargoniums,
stocks of hollyhocks, golden broom, honeysuckle, and convol-
vulus— then, betw^een the shoulders of the mountain, olive-
groves, their dull green mass banked by the lighter forest
trees, and on the flanks the broad lawns, where in the shadow
of great oaks you look far out to sea. There is the Lake ot
Galilee as you see it from Gadara, with the hills of Naphtali
above it. and Hermon filling all the north. There is the pro-
422 THE WORU>'S PROGRESS.
spective of the Jordan Valley as you look up from over Jericho,
between the bare ranges of Gilead and Ephraim, with the
winding ribbon of the river s jungle, and the top of Hermon
like a white cloud in the infinite distance. There is the forest
of Gilead, where you ride, two thousand feet high, under the
boughs of great trees creaking and rustling in the wind, with
all Western Palestine before you. There is the moonlight
view out of the bush on the northern flank of Tabor, the leap
of the sun over the edge of Bashan, summer morning in the
Shephelah, and sunset over the Mediterranean, when you see
it from the gateway of the ruins on Samaria down the glisten-
ing Vale of Barley. Even in the barest provinces you get
many a little picture that lives with you for life — a chocolate-
coloured bank with red poppies against the green of the prickly
pear hedge above it, and a yellow lizard darting across; a
river-bed of pink oleanders flush with the plain; a gorge in
Judaea, where you look up between limestone walls picked out
with tufts of grass and black-and-tan goats cropping at them,
the deep blue sky over all, and, on the edge of the only shadow,
a well, a trough, and a solitary herdsman.
" And then there are those prospects in which no other
country can match Palestine, for no other has a valley like
the Ghor, or a desert like that which falls from Judaea to the
Dead Sea. There is the view from the Mount of Olives,
down twenty miles of desert hill-tops to the deep blue waters,
with the wall of Moab glowing on the further side like burn-
ished copper, and staining the blue sea red with its light.
There is the view of the Dead Sea through the hazy afternoon,
when across the yellow foreground of Jeshimon the white
Lisan rises like a pack of Greenland ice from the blue waters,
and beyond it the Moab range, misty, silent and weird. There
are the precipices of Masada and Engedi sheer from the salt
coast. And, above all, there is the view from Engedi under
the full moon, when the sea is bridged with gold, and the
eastern mountains are black with a border of opal."*
The literature of no other people has more vividly reflected
a landscape than has that of the ancient Hebrews. Without
some understanding of Palestine, one would fail to appreciate
much that is beautiful in Hebrew poetry. While we shall
• Smith : Historical Geography, 94.
TH^ STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 423
touch upon this again in the consideration of Hebrew Utera-
ture, some examples will sufficiently illustrate this point.
Take, for example, a portion of the Hundred and Fourth
Psalm :
He sendeth forth springs into the valleys;
They run among the mountains:
They give drink to every beast of the field ;
The wild asses quench their thirst.
By them the fowl of the heaven have their habitation,
They sing around the branches.
He watereth the mountains from his chambers :
The earth is satisfied with the fruits of thy work.
He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle,
And herb for the service of man :
That he may bring forth food out of the earth,
And wine that maketh glad the heart of man,
And oil to make his face to shine, '^
And bread that strengtheneth man's heart.
The trees of Jehovah are satisfied ;
The cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted ;
Where the birds make their nests :
As for the stork, the fir trees are her house;
The high mountains are for the wild goats ;
The rocks are a refuge for the conies.
O Jehovah, how manifold are thy works!
In wisdom hast thou made them all :
The earth is full of thy riches.
Yonder is the sea, great and wide.
Wherein are things creeping innumerable,
Both small and great beasts.
There go the ships ;
There is leviathan, whom thou hast formed to take his
pastime therein.
These wait all upon thee,
That thou mayest give them their meat in due season.
This poem reflects general characteristics of the land. The
next is a pastoral poem which could have been written only
in Judaea. Its figures are pastoral throughout, and lack of
424 THE WORWJ'S PROGRESS.
acquaintance with the land wherein it was produced often
causes one to miss the successive pictures it portrays. Refer-
ence is made to the Twenty-third Psalm, wherein the compari-
son of the shepherd with his sheep is maintained.
" The Lord is my shepherd,
I shall not want."
Only a good faithful shepherd could lead his sheep in
Judaea so that at no time would they want for care or food.
" He maketh me to lie down in green pastures : "
Pasturage was often scanty, and to lie always in green
pastures was the greatest boon that could befall the sheep.
" He leadeth me beside the still waters."
Not lakes, but cisterns or pools, constructed to hold the
rains of winter for use in the dry months of summer. Unless
these were carefully sought out in each new pasture, the sheep
would suffer from thirst.
" Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil ;
For thou art with me:
Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me."
When one pasture was exhausted, it was necessary to
journey to another. Danger lurked on every side. Did the
sheep wander away, they were sure to be attacked by fierce
animals, or stolen by other herders. The shepherd led the
way amid all dangers, and his rod and staff gave assurance
to the sheep some distance from him.
" Thou preparest a table before me
In the presence of mine enemies:
Thou anointest my head with oil ;
My cup runneth over."
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 42$
The figure is not changed here, as some have supposed,
and a banquet introduced. Quite on the contrary. In that
land grew many poisonous herbs, Hkely to be unnoticed by
the sheep. The shepherd watched to see that his flock found
food free from these enemies. Then at last, when the night
fell, and the flock was gathered into the fold, the shepherd
stood by the door with a cup of oil in his hand ready to pour
on the heads of weary, exhausted lambs, thus to refresh and
revive them. Only a little could be spared for each one. To
have a cup filled to overflowing was a wonderful blessing.
So is the figure carried on to the end of the beautiful song,
and only goodness and mercy could possibly attend one so pro-
tected.
1—29
426 THE world's progress.
CHAPTER VII.
Sources of Hebrew History.
We may divide the sources of early Hebrew history into
(1) Hebrew sources, and (2) sources supplied by contem-
poraneous nations and by archaeology. The Hebrew sources
are principally three: the historical books of the Old Testa-
ment, the Talmud, the writings of Josephus. The sources
derived elsewhere are records and inscriptions throwing light
upon the events of this ancient nation as chronicled by the
Egyptians, Babylonians, and Assyrians, and statements of
Greek travellers and writers bearing upon their later develop-
ment. Moreover, in late years the spade of the excavator has
unearthed ruins and remains which have added materially
to previous knowledge of the subject and have established
beyond any doubt facts previously unsettled.
Before taking up a discussion of the historical books of
the Old Testament — the first of the Hebrew sources, — it is
necessary that we consider the compilation of the Bible, and
understand how the many books which compose it were made
up, and gathered into the one volume with which we are now
familiar.
Only in late years have people generally been ready to
approach the study of the Bible in the spirit of modern investi-
gation long applied to other fields of learning. While the
reasons for this reluctance may not be at once apparent, they
are not difficult to discover.
During the Middle Ages religious teaching was guarded
and kept alive by monks in the monasteries of Europe. Only
with them was learning of any sort fostered and saved from
extinction during the period known as the Dark Ages. The
books which these monks studied, and the records and pro-
ductions they committed to paper or parchment, were invari-
ably written in Latin — a tongue unknown to the people at
large. Since the Bible existed only in Latin, Hebrew or
Greek, it was a sealed book to the masses, who knew it only
through brief portions read and explained to them by the
priests.
The story of the Hebrews. 427
After a time, translations were made, first of portions only,
then the entire work was rendered in modern languages.
Still it was not considered fitting to allow its contents to be
generally known. Copies were chained to pulpits in the
cathedrals and were opened by the priest alone. Those who
might have been able to procure the costly copies were not
permitted to do so. In the story of England we shall find
that only a few centuries ago, to possess a Bible and read it
aloud in the family was made an offense and was punishable
if discovered. Thus a mystery attached to the Scriptures, in-
stilled into the masses by those who guarded the ancient volume.
The awe and reverence so aroused, clung to the Bible genera-
tions after its contents had become familiar to the Christian
world. One scholar calls the Bible " literature smothered
in reverence."
Again, no other event can be cited throughout history
which has had so great an effect upon the world as had the
ministry of Christ, recorded at length in the New Testament.
The doctrines he taught have been held sacred by his followers
in all subsequent ages.
The prophetic literature of the Old Testament had fore-
told the coming of some one who should restore Israel, and
the ancient Hebrew nation looked with expectancy to the birth
of one who should raise their kingdom to the rank of power-
ful nations of the earth. By some, Christ was identified with
the one whose coming the prophets had proclaimed, and thus
a continuity was found throughout the Bible — from the epic
of creation in the beginning, to the birth and teaching of
Christ, and the added records of his apostles. For many
years the entire work was spoken of as the " Word of God,"
and equal reverence given the sixty-four books which com-
pose it. A verse would be quoted from one chapter with no
regard to its context quite as freely as from another. Sen-
tences would be extracted from primitive Hebrew law and put
side by side with portions of Christ's Sermon on the Mount,
or Paul's letters to mission churches. Finally scholars began
to exclaim against such crude and literal interpretation of the
Scriptures. " Here," they exclaimed, " is a book embodying
legends current among a Semitic people twenty-five hundred
years before the birth of Christ ; there are prayers and hymns
428 THB WORIJ)'S PROGRESS.
of praise composed at varying periods and finally brought
together into one collection; and once again, here is a series
of letters written by early preachers of the gospel to their
outlying churches, and you are culling a stanza here, a verse
there, and a sentence in a third place, as though they were
of equal value and had been written under similar circum-
stances!" Far from welcoming new light upon the subject
of deep importance, a cry of indignation arose, from the clergy
as well as laymen. It was argued that a scientific study of the
Bible would be sure to detract from the force and influence
of its teachings, and was in itself irreverent. But the spark
of Promethean fire was not destined to go out — the spirit of
investigation was abroad. The more scholars searched and
studied, the more they were persuaded that a scientific exposi-
tion of the Bible would enhance rather than lessen its value.
They saw that changing ideas in the book itself existed and
had been passed over by those who did not understand them
and who thought it their duty to blindly accept what they
did not comprehend; while a broader conception was destined
to lead to the establishment of profound religious truths, far
more satisfying than the earlier blind belief.
At last the facts these scholars derived, the methods they
applied, the conclusions they reached, largely overcame pre-
judices of long standing, and it may safely be said that to-
day only those people oppose a scientific study of the Bible
who are themselves unfamiliar with scientific study in other
fields of knowledge.
With this explanation, the results of careful investigation
of the Old Testament will henceforth be cited and used freely
with no further comment, since by such study alone can we
come into a true understanding of a wonderful literature and
a remarkable people.
The word Bible means books, or a library. A consider-
able portion of Hebrew literature has herein been preserved
to us. Originally these productions were written in the an-
cient Hebrew tongue, and had no connection with one an-
other save that they treated of the same people at different
stages of their development, and further, treated in some form
— most of them, at least — of their faith. When these writ-
ings were first collected and bound together, more books were
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 429
included than at present. Since then the collection has been
edited and re-edited. Compilers have introduced notes in the
text and assigned authorship of certain writings to those who
were themselves mere compilers. Later still, it became cus-
tomary to write books in verses; into this form the contents
of the Scriptures were thrown. Instead of a narrative being
given at length it was divided into verses, as in our Bibles at
present used. Instead of a poem being reproduced in its
original form, or a drama being divided by the speeches of its
participants, both were cast into verses and numbered. Thus
prose and poetry came to have the same appearance.
" More than fifty books, the production of a large number
of different authors representing periods of time extending
over many centuries, are all comprehended between the covers
of a single volume. There is no greater monument of the
power of printing to diffuse thought than this fact, that the
whole classic literature of one of the world's greatest peoples
can be carried about in the hand or pocket.
" But there is another side to the matter. ■ A high price
has been paid for this feat of manufacturing a portable litera-
ture: no less a price than the effacement from the books of
the Bible of their whole literary structure. Where the litera-
ture is dramatic there are no names of speakers nor divisions
of speeches; there are no titles to essays or poems, nor any-
thing to mark where one poem or discourse ends and another
begins. It is as if the whole were printed * solid,' like a news-
paper without newspaper headings. The most familiar Eng-
lish literature treated in this fashion would lose a great part
of its literary interest; the writings of the Hebrews suffer
still more through our unfamiliarity with many of the literary
forms in which they were cast. Even this statement does not
fully represent the injury done to this literature of the Bible
by the traditional shape in which it is presented to us. Be-
tween the Biblical writers and our own times have intervened
ages in which all interest in literary beauty was lost, and
philosophic activity took the form of protracted discussions
of brief sayings or * texts.' Accordingly this solidified matter
of Hebrew literature has been divided up into single sentences
or * verses,' numbered mechanically one, two, three, etc., and
thus the original literary form has been further obscured. It
430 THE world's progress.
is not suqjrising that to most readers the Bible has become,
not a literature, but simply a store-house of pious * texts.' " '
We call certain books of the Old Testament historical,
but this does not mean, in this case, that they were written
with the sole object of chronicling the events of Hebrew pro-
gress. They were at the same time books of devotion, show-
ing God's dealing with them, His chosen people.
Before the ninth or eighth century b. c, records of
Israel's past existed only in snatches of song and in traditions
handed down by word of mouth from one generation to an-
other. The Song of Deborah, preserved in the Book of
Judges, belongs to a remote period; the legends of creation,
common to the Semitic race, as related in Genesis were cur-
rent from time immemorial. In the eighth century before
Christ an effort was made in the " Schools of the Prophets "
to compile the history of Israel, but the leading motive was
rather to illustrate God's favor to them in the past by citing
instances familiar to them all, and to prove that divine pro-
tection had been withdrawn from them when they had gone
astray — as exemplified in their past, rather than to leave for
future ages records of their heroic deeds and victories and
civil administration. The result was that the historical writ-
ings prepared were based on ancient traditions, to be sure, but
reflected the religious beliefs and the normal ideas of the age
in which they were produced.
The historical books include Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus,
Numbers, Joshua, Judges, I. and II. Samuel, I. and II. Kings,
Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah. Other books, such as
Isaiah, for example, include historical matter.
" The first portion of the history, the biblical Genesis, gives
us what that word implies — the Gradual Formation of the
Chosen Nation. The next section on the Exodus (the biblical
Bxodiis, Leviticus, Numbers), the Emigration of the Chosen
People to the Land of Promise; with migration goes the
gradual evolution into an organized nation, and the massing
at this point of legal documents makes the Constitutional His-
tory of Israel. Under the name of The Judges (the biblical
Joshua, Judges, part of Samuel) we next distinguish the Grand
Transition : a people starting with theocracy, the government
1 Biblical Masterpieces, Moulton. Intro.
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 43I
of an invisible God, comes to accept the rule of visible kings
copied from nations around. But precisely at the time these
kings begin there is established a regular order of ' prophets,'
or interpreters for God, representing the old idea of theocracy :
the fourth period of the history may be named as The Kings
and The Prophets, a regular Government of Kings tempered
by an Opposition of Prophets. Then comes the Exile: the
witnessing of Israel for Jehovah has to be carried on in the
land of strangers. There return from exile, not the whole
people, but only those who are devoted to the service of God ;
not the Hebrew Nation, hut the Jewish Church : and the final
section is thus the Ecclesiastical History of The Chronicles.
The spirit of the history is throughout made emphatic by story,
or at times by fable or song. But in addition to the formal
historic books we have to note two others :
" Deuteronomy gives us the Orations and Songs of Moses,
emphasizing the crisis of the leader's Farewell to Israel. And
in Isaiah we find a certain dramatic work, which, in con-
nection with the deliverance from exile, reads a meaning into
events such as strikes a unity through the whole career of
the chosen people : it is an Epilogue to the History of Israel."
The Talmud has been mentioned as a second source of
Hebrew history. The word itself means literally " learning,"
or "teaching." It is the name given a collection of Hebrew
writings which were written primarily to explain and exem-
plify Jewish law. Two Talmuds were prepared, one in Baby-
lon— known as the Babylonian Talmud, or the Talmud
of the Eastern land; the other written in Jerusalem,
known as the Talmud of the Western land. They were kept
in the temples and added to and continued by rabbis through
the first five centuries after the Christian era. The interest
in them for the historian today centers around the traditions
and legends introduced, these having been current among the
Hebrews generations earlier. The Talmud is rich in folklore,
and so possesses relative value from a historical standpoint.
Third among Hebrew sources we have noted the Writings
of Josephus. Josephus was a Jewish priest who lived in the
first century after Christ. Not only was he himself a priest
but for twenty-four generations before him his forefathers
had presided in the temple. During his life, Palestine was
432 TH^ worIvD's progress.
held by the Romans, and he wrote the " Antiquities of the
Jews," and a history of the Jewish War, to acquaint the people
of his day with the story of his people. He claims to have
found his material in the sacred books of the temple and fre-
quently explains at length events merely mentioned in the
Old Testament. His writings have been valued both in
early and recent times.
Among the sources elsewhere obtained, the records of con-
temporaneous nations are of first importance. The oppres-
sion of the Israelites under the Egyptian pharaoh, for example,
is believed to find confirmation in scenes and inscriptions
recently discovered in the valley of the Nile. In our study
of Assyrian conquest, we have noted tribute lists and memorials
celebrating victories over the Hebrew kingdoms, recovered
among other ruins in Mesopotamia. The king of Babylonia
finally left Jerusalem, the beautiful city of Palestine, demol-
ished and well nigh abandoned. Thousands of her noblest
citizens were taken captives to Babylon. This incident was
naturally chronicled in Babylonian annals. Similar instances
might be cited, but these serve to show ways in which material
for Hebrew history may be gleaned from the records of nations
that flourished by her side.
Lastly we may note the results of archaeological research
as supplying material for the reconstruction of Israel's past.
In 1883 M. Naville opened a mound wherein was discovered
a portion of what is supposed to have been Pithom — one of
the two " store-cities," built by the Children of Israel while
in bondage. The bricks still remaining verified the story as
it has come down to us from the Hebrews themselves, in the
Book of Exodus. The lower rows of bricks were mixed with
straw ; those laid in later were kneaded with stubble, and those
last placed were formed simply of sun-dried mud.
Explorations have been carried on recently in Jerusalem
and elsewhere in Palestine, and some important discoveries
have already been made.
In spite of these various means, we have scanty material
at best for the reconstruction of Hebrew history. The
Hebrews were unhistorical and did not appreciate, nor appar-
ently care to preserve, their secular history. Records of price-
less value were allowed to perish and we have today only ex*
rTH^ STORY OP THS HEBREWS.
433
tracts from them, or some simple phrase concerning them.
It was the portion of Israel to tell the world of her religion
and to leave to others the extolling of earthly successes and
failures. The comments of alien nations are unsatisfactory,
for their attitude was generally hostile, or at least, unsympa-
thetic. Nevertheless, while questions remain unanswered and
certain points disputed by authorities, we are able to follow
with some degree of certainty the formation of the Hebrew
nation and its political development.
BIGH PRIEST.
434 THE world's progress.
CHAPTER VIII.
The Hebrews Prior to Their Occupation of Canaan.
Regarding the earliest period of Israel's existence there
has been wide difference of opinion. Until recently there
have been many who have accepted literally the early books
of the Old Testament, composed hundreds of years after the
events recorded took place, and the product of several writers,
all of whom were filled with a desire to show the favor of
God exemplified in every detail of Hebrew progress. If one
takes the position that the history of the Hebrews is different
from that of every other people in the world's history, if it
be held that their development cannot be traced as the un-
folding of all other peoples has been traced, then there is
nothing more to be said — one can merely chronicle the won-
ders and marvel. If, on the other hand, one accepts the abso-
lutely established historical fact that these people began as
other nations began, in a very crude and primitive state, and
came slowly into enlightenment as did nations contemporan-
eous with them, then the progress of the early Hebrews can be
similarly followed. The conclusions which seem to be best
substantiated are the ones we shall consider, noting at the
same time that among authorities and scholars many differ-
ences of opinion still exist.
It is generally conceded that about 1500 b. c. a company
of Semitics, originally inhabiting Arabia, but for some years
settlers in Mesopotamia, set out from the Euphrates valley —
probably from Ur — and journeyed westward. The name
Abraham is the one tradition gives as the leader of this com-
pany, which after the fashion of nomads, sought new pas-
tures in districts less crowded than those of Chaldea. Among
those who attached themselves to this migration appear to
have been the ancestors of the tribes later known as the
Moabites, Ammonites and Edomites. By slow stages this
band of emigrants passed into Syria and reached at length
the country we know as Palestine. At that time it was known
as Canaan, and was the home of Semitics more or less closely
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 435
related to the people we know as Phoenicians. The Canaanites
and Phcenicians are often identified. As a matter of fact tlie
Canaanites were Phoenicians who occupied the country 'dis-
tricts and, save for a common heritage, had little in .-ominon
with those merchantmen who filled the great sea-ports of
Phoenicia.
The Moabites and Ammonites immediately settled the
most fertile places in the plateaus of the Eastern Range, and
continued the sheep-raising and cattle grazing to which' they
had long been accustomed. The Edomites also found homes
for themselves. The few followers of Abraham appear to
have continued their life as tent-dwellers in the southern part
of Canaan,
There is no reason to doubt the existence of this ancient
hero of the Jewish people, whose name is preserved in the two
forms of Abram and Abraham. It was natural that various
stories from later periods should be attached to his name, but
in himself and his fellow wanderers we have the beginnings of
the Hebrews. The story of their wanderings along the
Euphrates and thence on to Palestine is typical of the manner
in which nomadic bands skirted the borders of Babylonian
culture to make settlements of their own.
In the course of a few generations this Abrahamic
settlement in Palestine became several tribes, named after
successive leaders, all represented in Genesis as immediate
descendants of Abraham. Later tradition of these early days
condensed the time and the characters to the life of a single
family. Thus the stories surrounding the lives of the patri-
archal heroes Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are the visualization
of the characteristics of the heroic age of the Hebrews.
The descendants of the tribes represented by these names
finally journeyed further south, settling in a fertile district
northeast of the delta of the Nile and known by the name
of Goshen. Famine was responsible for this migration and
the closer alliance of the tribes under the general term of "the
children of Israel."
When these Israelites first came into Egypt, a great
Semitic upheaval had taken place in the ancient world, and
there seem to be reasons for thinking that the welcome given
them was due to the fact that a Semitic pharaoh ruled in
» History of the People of Israel ; Cornill, 30.
43^ THK world's progress.
Egypt. In any event, they lived peaceably for two or three
generations — how much longer we do not know — when the
aspect of matters changed. The native rulers were restored
and because Egypt was having difficulty with tribes in West-
ern Asia, foreigners within her immediate borders were looked
upon with suspicion. A large number of laborers were needed
to carry on gigantic building projects, and the Israelites were
suddenly impressed as public slaves, and set to work under
armed guards.
It was against all nature that desert nomads, accustomed
to the freedom of the wide world, would long endure this servi-
tude. The instincts of their ancestors would live on for many
generations, although temporarily overpowered. After being
ground down by the heel of the oppressor for a considerable
number of years, they were at length incited by Moses to
depart for the land still known to them by stories handed down
from father to son — the land of Canaan.
Moses, by birth a Hebrew, had been educated in the
family of an Egyptian, but became an outlaw upon killing an
Egyptian while defending one of his own kinsmen. Escaping
to the land of the Midianites, he had drunk in the air of free-
dom and the instincts of his forefathers were stimulated into
activity. Learning from his priest father-in-law in Midian he
accepted Jahweh as his God. He grieved over the condition
to which his people had fallen, and brooding over it, ex-
perienced a divine commission to restore them to freedom.
Rallying them in the name of Jahweh, he led them out of the
land of bondage. According to the Hebrew account, Egypt
was at that particular time stricken by plagues, and the people,
naturally superstitious, attributed their afflictions to the for-
eigners within their land. So incensed against them did they
become that the ruler, in a moment of weakness, consented to
their exodus. No sooner had they departed, however, than he
bethought him of the laborers he had lost, and dispatched the
flower of his cavalry to compel their return.
A wind, blowing fiercely, made a fording of the Sea pos-
sible for the Israelites, but the cavalry, sent in pursuit, was en-
gulfed and lost. This incident was seized upon as a mark of
divine favor by these disheartened people, who saw direct in-
tervention of Jahweh in their behalf. Thus the power of a
tut STORY 0^ rut HHBREWS. 437
supreme God was impressed upon their minds as long years
of religious instruction could never have impressed it.
For forty years the Children of Israel wandered in the
desert, loitering here and there, finding their way between
hostile tribes. During these years the figure of Moses stands
forth with unfailing strength and courage. The people he had
led thither were mere children, rendered dependent and un-
steadfast by their long period of servitude. When difficulties
beset them, they did not hestiate to turn upon their deliverer
and reproach him, and to wish often to return to the land they
had recently left, where food was always forthcoming, even
though at the expense of liberty and self-respect. But Moses,
with staunch heart and great patience, slowly organized them
into a religious body, finding unity for them in the one God,
Jahweh. Meanwhile a new generation was growing up among
them; sons and daughters who were born in the air of free-
dom, assimilated new ideas more readily, were more steadfast
in their purpose, and grew into greater self-reliance than their
fathers knew. With this new spirit manifest, we see the possi-
bilities of a dawning nation, and a more promising future.
Not long before the exodus, incoming Philistines pressed
the Canaanites farther east, and they in turn displaced the
Moabites and Ammonites from their fertile homes in the
Eastern Range. These Semitics remembered their old allies,
now in the desert, and besought them for aid. The Israelites
helped them defeat the Canaanites and then appropriated the
fertile places for themselves. Soon, however, increasing num-
bers made it necessary to seek wider room, and the tribe of
Judah crossed the Jordan and settled the tableland which after-
wards bore its name. This settlement was not made with-
out great effort, for the earlier inhabitants held tenaciously to
the land. The tribes of Simeon and Levi tried to do like-
wise, but their treachery made them victims to the revenge
of the Canaanites. The Levites disappeared as a tribe, but were
perpetuated as a priestly order. The Simeonites became^ ab-
sorbed with the tribe of Judah. Reuben and Gad remained
east of the Jordan, and the remaining tribes united under
Joshua and made an atta<:k upon the central part of Canaan.
Jericho fell into their hands, also Ai and Bethel. When these
most exposed places fell to their portion, the mhabitants of
438 THE world's progress.
Gibeon, a Canaanite stronghold, grew alarmed for their own
safety and craftily sought a treaty with the invaders. This
becoming known among the league of Canaanite cities, banded
together to drive out the Israelites, the members of the league
were so incensed that they marched against the walls of Gibeon
for thus deserting their common cause. The citizens of Gibeon
appealed to the Hebrews for aid, and according to their treaty,
Joshua led his army out to meet the forces of the besiegers.
The Hebrews were accustomed to hand-to-hand conflicts,
and to the heights; the Canaanites fought wherever possible
with chariots, and naturally preferred the plains. At first it
seemed as though the advantage belonged to the Canaanites,
for they carried the battle into the plain, and had strong cities
behind them. Nevertheless, a sudden rain made the earth so
soft that their chariots availed them little, and when the rain
changed to hail, their ranks w^ere thrown into confusion.
The book of Jashar, an ancient Hebrew work, has not been
preserved but was apparently made up of old ballads and war
songs. A fragment repeated in the book of Joshua recounts
that Joshua, the famous Hebrew warrior, commanded the
sun and moon to stand still until the battle ended. Some in-
fer that he wished daylight to remain until the battle could
be fought out ; others hold that he wanted the darkness of
the storm to continue, to further discomfit the Canaanites.
" Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon ;
And thou. Moon, in the valley of Ajalon.
And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed.
Until the nation had avenged themselves of their enemies."*
Victory belonged to the Israelites, and the seven tribes
took possession of trans-Jordan regions.
" But this does not mean that Israel was in full possession
of the land: by far the best and most fertile portions of it,
and especially the majority of the cities, whose strong fortifi-
cations made them impregnable to the primitive military skill
of the Israelites, remained in possession of the Canaanites ; it
was chiefly the woody mountain chains of northern and middle
Palestine that had come into the power of Israel, and the
2 Joshuia, 10. 12.
i
The story ov the HEBREWS. 439
Canaanites had partly to be subdued by force and partly to be
peacefully absorbed— a long and difficult task."*
" Then sang Moses and the Children of Israel this song
unto the Lord :
"I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously:
The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.
The Lord is my strength and song,
And he is become my salvation:
This is my God, and I will praise him ;
My father's God, and I will exalt him.
(1) Sung by Men.
"The Lord is a man of war:
The Lord is his name.
Pharaoh's chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea:
And his chosen captains are sunk in the Red Sea. '
The deeps cover them:
They went down into the depths like a stone.
Sung by Women.
"Sing ye to the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously:
The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.
(2) Men.
"Thy right hand, O Lord, is glorious in power,
Thy right hand, O Lord, dasheth in pieces the enemy.
And in the greatness of thine excellency thou overthrowest
Them that rise up against thee :
Thou sendest forth thy wrath, it consumeth them as stubble
And with the blast of thy nostrils the waters were piled up,
The floods stood upright as an heap;
The deeps were congealed in the heart of the sea.
The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide
the spoil:
My lust shall be satisfied upon them;
I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them
Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them:
They sank as lead in the mighty waters.
« History of People of Israel, 47.
440 thS wori^d's progress.
IVomen.
" Sing ye to the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously t
The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.
(3) Men.
" Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the Gods ?
Who is like thee, glorious in holiness,
Fearful in praises, doing wonders?
Thou stretchest out thy right hand.
The earth swallowed them.
Thou in thy mercy hast led the people which thou hast re-
deemed :
Thou hast glided them in thy strength to thy holy habitation.
The peoples have heard, they tremble :
Till thy people pass over, O Lord,
Till the people pass over which thou hast purchased.
Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of
thine inheritance,
The place, O Lord, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in,
The sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have established.
The Lord shall reign forever and ever.
Women.
" Sing ye to the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously :
The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea."
— Modern Reader's Bible.
TH^ STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 441
CHAPTER IX.
The Era of the Judges.
As we have seen, Joshua's victory left the conquest of
Canaan but begun. It so happened that the great powers
were too absorbed with their own affairs to expand by con-
quest, so the earlier inhabitants of Palestine and the Hebrews
were left to fight out their difficulties as best they might.
For some generations after the entrance of the Israelites into
Canaan, confusion and disorder ruled. The invaders would
win the heights in a given region, while around them in the
plains and valleys, flourished hostile clans, often harassing
and threatening their settlements. Years of peace would settle
over the land, and the two peoples — Israelites and Canaanites
— would intermarry, when again the old hatred would break
out anew.
The period following the death of Joshua has been called
the " Era of the Judges." The simple statement of the an-
cient Hebrew chronicler makes clear the situation : " And
there was no king in Israel ; each man did that which was right
in his own eyes." Our knowledge of this age is derived chiefly
from the Book of Judges, which contains some of the earliest
records of the Israelites. However, the material herein con-
tained has not come down to us first hand. A prophet of later
times selected such material as suited his purpose from records
which were accessible to him. The writer or writers of the
Book of Judges desired to inculcate religious truths — not to
recount historical events. Such pictures of the life during
those years which followed Hebrew occupation of Canaan as
seemed best were fitted into phrases like these : " And the peo-
ple of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of Jahweh, and
Jahweh delivered them into the hands of their enemies."
" The people of Israel cried unto Jahweh and He raised up
to them a deliverer, and the land had rest." It seems to have
been fortunately the case that the older material was incor-
porated into the phrases with little change, and from it one
442 THE world's progress.
is able to get a very fair idea of the stage of progress to
which the Hebrews had then arrived.
Thirteen Judges are mentioned in the Old Testament, and
there were surely many more whose names were not recorded.
In times of emergency, danger, attack or oppression, a clan,
or several clans, one tribe or possibly two or three tribes, would
voluntarily unite under some chosen chieftain, whose duties
and powers were indefinite. If he were able to deliver them
in their distress, they acknowledged him as their leader so
long as he lived. When a similar occasion arose, it was met
in a similar way. Since differences between clans, disputes
between individuals, and various questions were referred to
this chief for settlement, later writers named these men from
this duty of referees. Judges. Their earliest title of
" deliverer " was more expressive. The story of the several
recorded judges may be read in the biblical book bearing that
name. We shall consider the work of three — not necessarily
the most important in Israel's history.
Matters had become most threatening in Canaan. The
Canaanites had united for a final reduction of Israel and were
led by Sisera. This chief was victorious and seemed about
to overcome the Hebrew tribes. The very existence of Israel
was in gravest danger. The highways were unsafe, for these
were held by the Canaanites who were preparing for a final
stand. At this juncture Deborah, an inspired prophetess,
called upon Barak, a chieftain of the north, to deliver the
people. Intermarriage between the Israelites and Canaanites
had become so common -that it was useless to attempt to rally
the early tribes — early distinctions were no longer closely
drawn. So Deborah called on all who worshipped Jahweh
to rally in His cause. The old enthusiasm was rekindled, and
the Canaanites suffered a great defeat. Their king Sisera
escaped and took refuge in the tent of a peasant woman.
Trusting to her hospitality, he partook of refreshment she
offered him. Asking simply for water, she gave him milk.
When he fell asleep for a brief rest, she drove a tent-pin
through his head, thus killing him. It has been fully observed
that " only in an age of tents could such a deed have been
thus extolled." The Canaanites never recovered the loss of
that day's defeat, and their strength was permanently broken.
The story of the Hebrews.
443
The Song of Deborah, recorded in the Book of Judges, is
one of the earhest writings in the Old Testament. It has
recently been thrown again into its original verse form, and
rings clear of an early age, echoing the spirit of a crude but
vigorous race.
Deborah's Song.
Men. For that the leaders took the lead in Israel —
Women. For that the people oflfered themselves willingly —
All. Bless ye the Lord!
Prelude.
Men. Hear, O ye kings —
Women. Give ear, O ye princes —
Men. I, even I, will sing unto the Lord —
Women. I will sing praises to the Lord, the God of Israel.
All. . Lord, when thou wentest forth out of Seir,
When thou marchedst out of the field of Edom,
The earth trembled, the heavens also dropped,
Yea, the clouds dropped water.
The mountain flowed down at the presence of the Lord.
Even yon Sinai at the presence of the Lord, the
God of Israel.
I. The Desolation.
Men. In the days of Shamgar, the son of Anath,
In the days of Jael,
The highways were unoccupied,
And the travellers walked through byways;
The rulers ceased in Israel,
They ceased —
Women. Until that I, Deborah, arose,
That I arose a mother in Israel.
They chose new gods;
Then was war in the gates:
Was there a shield or spear seen
Among forty thousand in Israel?
Men. My heart is toward the governors of Israel —
Women. Ye that oflFered yourselves willingly among the people—
All. Bless ye the Lordi
444 "m^ WORI^D S PROGRESS.
Men. Tell of it, ye that ride on white asses.
Ye that sit on rich carpets,
And ye that walk by the way: —
Women. Far from the noise of archers,
In the places of drawing water: —
All. There shall they rehearse the righteous acts of the
Lord,
Even the righteous acts of his rule in Israel.
II. The Muster.
All. The people of the Lord went down to the gates —
Men. Awake, awake, Deborah,
Awake, awake, utter a song: —
Women. Arise, Barak,
And lead thy captivity captive, thou son of Abinoan.
All. Then came down a remnant of the nobles.
The people of the Lord came down for me against
the Mighty.
Women. Out of Ephraim came down they whose root is in
Amalek —
Men. After thee, Benjamin, among thy peoples —
Women. Out of Machir came down the governors —
Men. And out of Zubulum they that handle the marshal's
staff—
Women. And the princes of Issachar were with Deborah —
Men. So was Issachar, so was Barak :
All. Into the valley they rushed forth at his feet.
Men. By the water courses of Reuben
There were great resolves of heart.
Women. Why satest thou among the sheepfolds.
To hear the pipings for the flocks?
Men. At the watercourses of Reuben
There were great searchings of heart!
Women. Gilead abode beyond Jordan —
Men. And Dan, why did he remain in ships?
Women. Ashur sat still at the haven of the sea.
And abode by his creeks.
Men. Zebulum was a people that jeoparded their lives unto
the death.
And Naphtali upon the high places of the field.
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS.
III. The Battle and the Rout.
Men. The kings came and fought;
Then fought the kings of Canaan,
In Taanach by the waters of Megiddo: —
They took no gain of money.
Women. They fought from heaven.
The stars in their courses fought against Sisera.
The river Kishon swept them away, —
That ancient river, the river Kishon!
Men. O my soul, march on with strength!
Then did the horsehoofs stamp
By reason of the prancings,
The prancings of their strong ones.
Women. Curse ye, Meroz, said the angel of the Lord,
Curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof;
Because they came not to the help of the Lord,
To the help of the Lord against the mighty!
445
IV. The retribution.
Men.
Blessed above women shall Jael be the wife of Heber
the Kenite,
Blessed shall she be above women in the tent!
He asked water, and she gave him milk;
She brought him butter in a lordly dish.
She put her hand to the nail,
And her right hand to the workman's hammer ;
And with the hammer she smote Sisera.
She smote through his head,
Yea, she pierced and struck through his temples.
At her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay:
At her feet he bowed, he fell:
When he bowed, there he fell down dead!
Women. Through the window she looked forth, and cried.
The mother of Sisera, through the lattice,
"Why is his chariot so long coming?
Why tarry the wheels of his chariots?"
Her wise ladies answered her,
Yea, she returned answer to herself,
" Have they not found.
Have they not divided the spoils?
446 THS world's progress.
A damsel, two damsels to every man;
To Sisera a spoil of divers colors,
A spoil of divers colors of embroidery.
Of divers colors of embroidery on both sides, on
the necks of the spoil ! "
All. So let all thine enemies perish, O Lord:
But let them that love him be as the sun when he
goeth forth in his might!
Having overcome the Canaanites, the Israelites were not
destined to long enjoy peace. Their own kinsmen, the
Ammonites and Moabites looked with envy upon their good
fortune in winning such desirable land and tried now to rob
them of it. Notwithstanding the fact that the Israelites, Moa-
bites and Ammonites had all a common ancestry, they were
never on that account restrained from plundering one an-
other's territories. Forced to take a definite stand against
them, the Hebrews cast about for a leader. Jephthah was
named. He was an outlavr, a bold border man, who belonged
to the Hebrew race, and his bravery was unquestioned. When
besought, he agreed to drive out the Ammonites on one con-
dition only : that he be acknowledged chieftain after the battle.
This being conceded, he led the Hebrew forces. It was in
keeping with his rough, reckless nature that he should vow
to sacrifice the first living thing he met upon his return were
he victorious. The Ammonites were defeated and to Jeph-
thah's utter consternation, his daughter, his only child, rushed
forth to meet him. We are told that his vow was kept, and
thus we know that human sacrifices were sometimes offered
to Jahweh.
During the era of the Judges, the Philistines on the south-
west began to expand, upon land already settled by the Israel-
ites. They overran the Plain of Sharon, and the Hebrews
who had peopled the plain were driven into the hills. This
crisis brought forth Samson, one of the chiefs who essayed
to stay the power of these new enemies. He was a simple
child of nature — a giant in strength, a weakling 'w steadf^^
purpose. He lacked the capacity to plan a campaign and
execute it. The stories of his prodigious power, his feats
of physical endurance, are too well known to require repeti-
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 447
tion. They were lauded by his admirers and delighted in by
the Israelites when directed against their enemies, but his
blows were invariably given to avenge personal wrongs, and
he left his people no farther on their way against the Philis-
tines than he found them.
The great difficulty during this period was that there was
no tendency to hold long together. " Israel had within itself
the worst of enemies and a germ of destruction. This was
the proud sense of independence and the strongly-developed
family feeling of the nomad, which did not immediately vanish
from the national character with the surrender of the nomadic
fashion of life. After the united effort under Joshua had but
barely laid the foundation, the people again broke up into
tribes and clans, which now aimlessly sought new places of
settlement, each on its own account and unmindful of its
neighbors." *
This tendency to fall apart was the most dangerous sign
of Israel's progress, and we shall see how it lasted through her
history. Nevertheless, for the time being the lesson was
learned that only by uniting against the enemy could victory
be won. The era of the Judges so far impressed this truth
upon the minds of the Hebrews that we note the beginnings
of Hebrew unity.
»Hist. of Peonle of Israel, 47.
448 ThB worIvD's progress.
CHAPTER X.
The Morauty o^ the Hebrews Prior to The Kingdom.
It is a mistake to suppose that the lofty conceptions of
Israel's later seers and prophets were manifest among the
people from the earliest times. Quite the reverse was true.
Like all primitive people, the Hebrews passed through the
usual stages of development, religiously and morally. Suffi-
cient evidence goes to show that they worshipped many gods
in the beginning, as did other Semitics. Joshua once re-
minded them of their earlier faith:
" Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood in old
time, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of
Nachor : and they served other gods." *
" In many respects doubtless their religion was closely
akin to that of neighboring Semitic people. They had their
sacred pillars, trees, and other emblems of the divine power
and presence; they carried with them teraphim, which were
apparently images venerated as household gods. In many of
their beliefs and practices they did not rise above the general
level of their age." "
During their long sojourn in Egypt, as might have been
expected, they grew to worship Egyptian gods. " Cast ye
away every man the abominations of his eyes, and defile not
yourselves with the idols of Egypt." *
The explanation which has seemed to make clear the unique
development of the Hebrew above other Semitics, is this one
— only recently offered. It is well-known that the Israelites
were originally henotheists — ^that is, they believed in many
gods — believed that many divinities were powerful, but they
gave allegiance to one, the god of their tribe. This god
belonged to their tribe, and shared its successes and failures.
Now when Moses accepted Jahweh, probably in Midian,
he persuaded the Israelites to forsake the gods they were wor-
shipping and give their homage to Jahweh. At the foot of
ijoshua, 24, 2. ^short Hist, of the Hebrews : Ottley. 26. ^Eztkiti,
20,7.
THE STORY OF THE) HEBREWS. 449
Sinai he caused them to make a covenant with Jahweh: the
God was to give them protection, and they were to worship
him alone. Because he was an adopted God and not a mem-
ber of their tribe, he was bound to protect them only when
they served him faithfully. The adopted God could cast off
his adopted people if they failed to fulfill their part of the
contract. The Hebrews always said that they were a peculiar
people. They repeatedly referred to the fact that God could
cast them off if they were unloyal to him. Such a thing is
unknown among other nations. No other God could cast
off his people; he was one of them. This explains also why
the Hebrews were always so ready to abandon their God and
take on the gods of their neighbors.
" In any case it is clear that Jahweh was not originally the
god of Israel, but only became such in consequence of the
work of Moses and of the events of the exodus. . . .
" Israel's relation to Jahweh was unique. . . . He
was not an ancestral god who stood in a natural and necessary
relation to his people, like the gods of other Semitic tribes;
but he was the god of Sinai and of Midian, who had come into
connection with Israel only through his own free, moral choice.
Israel belonged to him, not by birth, but by election. Its
existence and its continuance were dependent upon his sov-
ereign good pleasure, and he might cast it off as easily as he
had adopted it. Under these circumstances he had the right
to make conditions upon which his favour should depend such
as other gods could not make. This fact does not explain
the ethical character of the Mosaic religion; it explains only
why an ethical religion was promulgated at this particular
time." *
It is the custom of all primitive people to ascribe their
early laws and government to divine origin. This rule is
seldom varied, and was adhered to by the ancient Hebrews.
Instead of conceiving the God-Spirit as having endowed Moses
with true insight, wise judgments, and high ideals, the Is-
raelites believed that their Covenant had been dictated, word
by word, by Jahweh, while it was further claimed that tablets
with words inscribed upon them were given Moses by God
himself. As a matter of fact, the earliest decalogue differed
*Early Hist, of Syria and Palestine : Paton, 139, 141.
450 THE worIvD's progress.
widely from the one best known. The commandments first
given the people after they were led forth from Egypt were
probably the ones recorded in the thirty-fourth chapter of
Exodus, and were something like these:
1. Thou shalt worship no other god.
2. Thou shalt make thee no molten gods.
3. The feast of unleaven bread shalt thou keep.
4. Every firstling is mine.
5. Thou shalt keep the feast of the weeks.
6. Thou shalt keep the feast of the ingathering at the end of
the year.
7. Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven.
8. The fat of my feast shall not be left over until the morning.
9. Thou shalt bring the best of the first fruits of thy land to
the house of Jehovah thy God.
10. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother's milk.
Because Moses was known to the Israelites as a law-giver,
laws passed long after his death were attributed to him, quite
as laws which came into being years after the death of Ham-
murabit in Babylon were probably attributed to this great
national law-giver.
A company of slaves, escaping from servitude after sennng
for two or three generations, and having possessed but a crude
civilization previous to that experience, would require only the
simplest laws, and any one reading the various rules and regu-
lations attributed to this period will easily see how crude was
the stage of development which made such instruction neces-
sary. As time went on, and the people advanced and became
more enlightened, new laws were possible. These continued
to be known as the " Laws of Moses," as laws in all early
countries have been attributed to some renowned personage,
to give them added force.
In these early periods which we have been studying, the
religion of the Hebrews possessed many features in common
with those of surrounding nations. We read that the " Chil-
dren of Israel walked through the fire," which means that
they sacrificed their first-born in flames as offerings to their
God. Jahweh was believed to be a jealous God, vindictive,
demanding cruel treatment of captives, and fierce and relent-
THS STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 45I
less in battle. A man cannot get a higher ideal of God than
that of a perfect human being, and this was an age when all
ideas and ideals were crude.
When the Hebrews settled Canaan, they learned much
from the earlier inhabitants of the land. Becoming farmers,
they quite naturally fell into the way of worshipping the god
of harvests, and other agricultural deities of the Canaanites.
The " high places " are repeatedly spoken of, these being places
where other gods were worshipped. When roused by danger,
they renewed their covenant with Jahweh and returned to more
careful performance of their part of the early agreement
The system of polygamy was well established. Several
of the patriarchs took two or more wives. If a man died
childless, it was not only customary but a duty that the next
in line should marry the widow and raise up seed to his
memory. This is expressly shown by the story of Ruth,
most attractive in its early simplicity. We learn more of the
ever)' day life of the Israelites in the period following Hebrew
occupancy of Canaan from this little idyl than from any other
source, or from all other sources combined.
So far as germs of government and judicial administra-
tion of the people thus far discernible are concerned, they had
seemingly not progressed farther than the instruction of Moses
led them. The years spent in the wilderness after the exodus
were very essential to the future welfare of the Hebrew nation.
Their government — to whatever extent they possessed one —
was closely allied to their religion. There were many ex-
periences met with in these forty years which seemed to prove
Jahweh's care and protection over them, and Moses was re-
garded as his representative on earth, who received his in-
structions from Jahweh and delivered them to his people.
" His words were Jehovah's message to them. As he led
them in their wilderness wandering, they felt themselves under
the direct guidance of their God; he attended to the simple
ritual of the desert sanctuary at Kadesh ; to him, as the repre-
sentative of Jehovah, were referred the more difficult cases of
dispute which arose; his decisions had all the weight of
Jehovah's authority. In this way he laid down by practical
illustration the principles of that civil and religious law which
hears his name. As these cases multiplied, he was led to con-
452 THE world's progress
stitute a rude patriarchal tribunal composed of the elders of
the tribes. In this simple organization is found the germ of
the Hebrew judicial and executive system.
" Thus Moses was the man who under divine direction
* hewed Israel from the rock.' Subsequent prophets and cir-
cumstances chiselled the rough boulder into symmetrical form,
but the glory of the creative act is rightly attributed to the
first great Hebrew prophet. As a leader, he not only created
a nation, but guided them through infinite vicissitudes to a
land where they might have a settled abode and develop into
a stable power; in so doing, he left upon his race the imprint
of his own personality. As a judge, he set in motion forces
which ultimately led to the incorporation of the principles of
right in objective laws. As a priest, he first gave form to
the worship of Jehovah. As a prophet, he gathered together
all that was best in the faith of his age and race, and, fusing
them, gave to his people a living religion." ^
Before the time of the monarchy, their darkest years were
those wherein the Israelites departed from this Mosaic teach-
ing; their best periods, those in which they assimilated it and
attempted to carry it out. To whatever extent they developed
strength and stability for their future nation before the birth
of their kingdom, such strength came as a result of the Mosaic
religious and moral teaching.
^Hist. of the Hebrew People : Kent Vol. I 44.
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 453
CHAPTER XI.
Causes Leading to the Kingdom.
1250 B. c. has been taken as an approximate date for the
exodus of the Israelites from Eg^pt, some placing the event
still earlier. After the wandering in the desert, considerable
time was spent winning Canaan from its earlier possessors
before any settlement was possible. The twelfth century and
first part of the eleventh before Christ were years of re-adjust-
ment, the Israelites losing the habits of desert nomads and
becoming tillers of the soil.
In rocky districts they still raised sheep and cattle but
acquired fixed homes. Warfare had been constant, but in
later years had been carried on wholly by individual tribes,
there being no concerted action. The tendency to divide and
seek each its own peculiar interests had been apparent from
the first, and the beginning of the eleventh century b. c. found
the tribes prostrated as a result. The Canaanites no longer
threatened them but the Philistines constantly grew bolder.
When they pressed into the plain of Jezreel, the Israelites
were forced to fight them, but lacking an able leader and suffi-
cient numbers, they lost the day. Surviving instincts of earlier
superstitious practices led them to bring the ark containing
their covenant with Jehovah from its sanctuary at Shiloh,
thinking this might aid them in a second struggle. " Let us
fetch the ark of the covenant of Jehovah out of Shiloh unto
us, that it may come among us, and save us out of the hand
of our enemies." But instead of leading to victory, 30,000
Israelites fell upon the battle field and the sacred ark itself
fell into the hands of the Philistines.
" The Philistines burned and destroyed the temple at Shiloh,
carried the captured sacred ark to the temple of their chief
god, Dagon, and subjected the land, even to the Jordan; the
people were disarmed and held in check by Philistine prefects
and strongholds. And from all evidence this Philistine domi-
nation must have lasted a considerable time. Israel seemed
paralyzed and submitted, though with gnashing of teeth." '
^Hist. of the People of Israel : Cornill, 75.
454 THE world's progress.
When Israel lay stricken and at the mercy of her enemies
on the west, the Ammonites thought the time favorable to
lead a new attack for the purpose of recovering their earlier
territories on the east The town of Jabesh was first afflicted,
and when its inhabitants offered to surrender, feeling helpless
to overpower their ancient foes, the king of the Ammonites
insolently replied that he would cause the right eye of each
citizen of the town to be cast out, as a reproach to Israel. In
the quaint expression of Josephus : " The king of the Ammo-
nites sent ambassadors to them, commanding them either to
deliver themselves up, on condition to have their right eyes
plucked out, or to undergo a siege, and have their cities over-
thrown. He gave them their choice, whether they would cut
off a small number of their body, or universally perish." Im-
plored to grant them a few days respite, the king of the Am-
monites scornfully conceded it, sure of his ultimate triumph.
In Ephraim dwelt a seer, Samuel by name. He was a
godly man, having rare purity of character and intense reli-
gious fervor. Dedicated when a child to the service of
Jehovah, the course of his life had led him to catch the spirit
of the great founder of the Hebrew nation and beyond him,
to gain a broader conception of the great God-Spirit. He
understood why his people were a prey to every neighbor, and
knew better than most how much a firm leadership was needed
by them. With eyes that saw far into the future, Samuel
realized that the crying need was unity and concerted action.
Now in these ancient days, unity meant kingship. Under
strong kings, contemporary nations flourished, and a king was
apparently necessary in Canaan.
Saul, of the tribe of Benjamin, seeking his father's asses,
approached the seer, whose prophetic powers were well known
in his vicinity. The youth thought simply to invoke his aid
in his private interests, but Samuel recognized in the broad-
shouldered, well-proportioned Benjaminite one who might
come to the rescue of stricken Israel. With prophetic vision,
Samuel foretold coming events and anointed Saul as one
chosen of Jehovah to rule the nation of His special care. Since
he was not called immediately to action, Saul returned to his
father's house, where he went about his ordinary duties. But
the words of the seer had sunk deep into his heart. Indica-
The story of the HEBREWS. 455
tions of Israel's stricken condition were not wanting on every
hand, and Saul brooded over her helplessness and his call to
save his people. At length, when the citizens from mourning
Jabesh visited his vicinity, vainly trying to rouse their kins-
men to action, Saul saw that his opportunity had come. Sym-
pathy had been everywhere expressed by the Israelites, but
they had suffered too many recent defeats to feel confidence
in their ability to win.
Saul hastily cut up a yoke of oxen, and sending these bloody
tokens to the various tribes, he notified them that such treat-
ment would be meted out to their flocks and herds unless they
came to the relief of the trans-Jordan cities. Recognizing a
leader at last, men quickly gathered. The desert tribe was
surprised, defeated and pursued into its desert strongholds.
Thereupon Saul was popularly proclaimed king, as it was
now believed that he alone could save the Hebrews from the
Philistines, who were heavily oppressing them.
A king is ordinarily one who rules a kingdom, but in the
case of Saul, a kingdom had first to be won. His encounters
with the Philistines were successful, but his reig^ proved to
be a continual campaign against them. Gradually Saul be-
came estranged from Samuel, who represented the best ele-
ment in Israel. Priests of a later period assigned the dif-
ference between them as having arisen over Saul's leniency
toward his captives, but it is believed that instead it came
naturally between two men whose ideals were wide apart.
Saul was incapable of taking an exalted view of his people's
mission, as did his priest and prophet.
Beset on all sides by the enemy, estranged from Samuel
and in general from the priesthood, Saul became moody and
subject to fits of melancholia. To dispel these, David, son of
Jesse, was brought from his father's flocks on the mountain-
side, to gladden the king's idle hours. David was accom-
plished upon the harp, and his music had power to quiet the
restless king, who heaped favors and honors upon him — after
the nature of his impulsive disposition. As armour-bearer
to the king, David had frequent opportunities to distinguish him-
self, while he and the king's son Jonathan became fast friends.
However, as David grew in favor with the people, Saul be-
came intensely jealous of him. Where the kingship was but
456 THE WORIvD'S PROGRKSS.
an experiment, popularity was important to a ruler. In fiis
disordered brain, Saul conceived that a plot was being laid by
his son and David, and as a result, David was obliged to flee
for his life. He raised his standard as an outlaw chief, and
all the dissatisfied element of the land flocked to his side. Yet
even here David favored the people of Israel whenever he
could ; for protection he went into the service of the Philistine
king of Gath, but we are told that when he was supposed to be
fighting against the Hebrews, he was in reality fighting off
their desert enemies.
The division within the ranks of Israel once more gave
opportunity to the watchful Philistines. They made ready for
a final assault, and the moody and disheartened Saul prepared
to fight them back. He was no longer able to rouse his kins-
men as at first. Many were discontented with his rule, and
many favored David. Before the battle, Saul, grown more
superstitious with the pressure of circumstance, visited the
witch of Endor to learn by her art the issue of the battle.
Never does the king, tall in stature and once confident, but
now broken in spirit, appear more tragic. When she pre-
dicted defeat — and small art was needed to foretell such an
apparent outcome — Saul felt that all was lost. One feels as
when the voice of Caesar spake unto Brutus in the great play :
" Thou shalt see me at Philippi" — the battle is lost before it
is begun.
When all was lost, Saul gave his sword to his armour-
bearer to stab him lest he fall into the hands of the enemy.
When he lacked courage, he plunged it into his own breast.
Both he and his noble son Jonathan went down on that fate-
ful field, and so ended the first reign in Israel. David is be-
lieved to have composed his beautiful elegy " How are the
Mighty Fallen " upon this occasion.
Th^ story oif thb Hebrews. 457
David's Lament.
Thy glory, O Israel,
Is slain upon thy high places!
How are the mighty —
Fallen !
Tell it not in Gath,
Publish it not in the streets of Ashkelon;
Lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice.
Lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.
Ye mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew nor rain upon you,
Neither fields of offerings:
For the shield of the mighty was vilely cast away,
The shield of Saul, as of one not anointed with oil.
From the blood of the slain,
From the fat of the mighty,
The bow of Jonathan turned not back.
And the swora of Saul returned not empty.
Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives,
And in their death they were not divided;
They were swifter than eagles.
They were stronger than lions.
Ye daughters of Israel,
Weep over Saul,
Who clothed you in scarlet.
Who put ornaments of gold upon your apparel.
How are the mighty —
Fallen in the midst of the battle!
O Jonathan,
Slain upon thy high places.
I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan:
Very pleasant hast thou been unto me:
Thy love to me was wonderful,
Passing the love of women.
1—31
458 THE worIvD's progress.
How are the mighty —
FaUen!
And the weapons of war —
Perished !
— Modern Reader's Bible.
In the Old Testament itself are two contradictory esti-
mates of the character of Saul, One was written by those
who favored and cared for him; the other, by the faction
which favored David. Later compilers have thrown the two
together, and the result is that we must once more disentangle
the two narratives and then judge between them. The fol-
lowing characterizations of him differ considerably, and yet
have certain ideas in common:
" Saul is one of the most tragic figures in history. A
great and nobly endowed nature, heroic and chivalrous, in-
spired with fiery zeal, he finally accomplished nothing. . . .
He lacked appreciation of the true character of Israel ; in this
regard tradition has given a wholly correct picture of him.
He was exclusively a soldier, and was in a fair way to ex-
change Israel into a secular military state and thus divert it
from its religious function in universal history. Saul may
claim our deepest compassion and our heartiest sympathy,
but the fall of his power was a blessing for Israel." '
The second criticism upon the fallen king seems more fair
and sympathetic:
" Saul was a simple-minded, impulsive, courageous war-
rior; he was a loyal patriot who loved his people and was
ready to give his life for them; his physical pre-eminence,
combined with energy and enthusiasm, fitted him to lead a
sudden attack and to awaken loyal support, while his intrepid
courage kindled the same in others. But Saul was a son of
that rude age whose roots were found in the period of the
Judges. In a sense hje was a child grown big. The posi-
tion which he occupied demanded executive ability, tact, the
power of organization, and, above all, patience and persistency.
In these maturer qualities he was deficient ; they are rarely the
possession of fiery, impetuous natures. In addition, Saul was
rfnable to understand and appreciate the higher religious ex-
»Hist. of the People of Israel : Cornill, 83.
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 459
periences and ideals which were already becoming the pos-
session of the more enlightened souls of seers like Samuel.
As is frequently true with such a nature, Saul was super-
stitious. Circumstances tended to develop the darker rather
than the brighter side of his character. The constant trials
and cares of the court and battle-field daunted his enthusiasm,
and induced those attacks of melancholia which obscured the
nobler Saul and led him to commit acts which constantly
increased the density of the clouds that gathered about his
latter days.
" When he fell at Gilboa, and the Philistines again be-
came masters of northern and central Canaan, Saul's work
seemed to be completely undone ; but its foundations were laid
too deeply to he undermined by political changes. Saul found
the Hebrews ground down under Philistine dominance, broken
in spirit, undisciplined, and little more than cowards. He
united and aroused them to strike for independence. By his
successes he inspired in them confidence and courage. In the
severe training-school of Philistine warfare, he developed out
of the cowards who had fled before the Philistine army to
hide themselves in caves and cisterns, the hardy, brave war-
riors with whom David made his conquests. Above all, he
taught the Hebrews by practical illustration, more clearly
than ever before, that by union and union alone they could
be free, and enjoy peace and prosperity. As is often the
case, the pioneer perished amidst seeming failure before he
saw the ripe fruits of his labors; but his work was absolutely
necessary. David reaped the fruits of Saul's sowing, but the
harvest would never have been so glorious without the pioneer's
toils." •
Reign oe David.
Saul is supposed to have ruled not longer than eight or
ten years. His youngest son, Eshbaal, was recognized as his
natural successor. Abner, Saul's commander-in-chief, gave
Eshbaal the support of whatever army survived, and he was
established on the east side of the Jordan, while all the terri-
tory west of the river receded to the Philistines.
David realized that he was in no position to assume con-
"Hist, of the Hebrew People : Kent, Vol. 1, 180.
460 thb woru>'s progress.
trol of the Hebrews at this juncture, for he had but a few
hundred followers and he was sure to be welcomed by all the
tribes only when his services were required for the common
safety. Judah was deeply attached to him at this time, and
he allowed himself to be made king- of the tribe of Judah, and
established himself at Hebron.
As soon as Eshbaal felt sufficiently secure on the east of
Jordan Abner was sent to overcome David and his followers,
who had thus failed to recognize the kingship of Eshbaal.
They suffered defeat and had to retreat across the river. The
times were troublous and before eight years had passed, both
Eshbaal and Abner were murdered. This left the way open
for David, to whom the subjects of Eshbaal sent homage.
The Philistines had considered the little kingdom of Saul's
son unworthy of attention, but a kingdom on the west side
of the river might prove a menace to their power, so they
hastened to attack the newly crowned king. David marched
against them and broke forever their strength. They retired
into their earlier possessions and harassed Israel no more.
One by one the old enemies of the Hebrews had to be
reckoned with. The Moabites attacked the territory of David
and were overcome and made vassals. On the north the Am-
monites made a raid and were so completely defeated that we
hear of them no more. On the south the Edomites made war,
and their lands also became a Hebrew province. In all these
wars, David was the defender of his people — never the
aggressor, yet he left each tribe with no further desire to
make war upon Israel.
David was a statesman, and he saw at once that as king
of the Hebrews, he must no longer remain isolated with
his native tribe, in the vicinity to him most familiar. He saw
that the site of Jerusalem was capable of excellent defense,
and this he made his capital.
" Jerusalem is situated pretty near the central part of the
entire country, and belonging to none of the tribes it stood
on neutral ground above them and their rivalries. When it
is called the City of David this is no mere phrase, for Jerusalem
is altogether the creation of David ; and when we consider what
Jerusalem was to the people of Israel, and through the people
of Israel to all mankind, we shall recognize in the foundation
of this City of David an event of world-wide importance."
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 461
Israel had reached the highest pinnacle of its political
power. David's kingdom was the most powerful one between
the valley of the Euphrates and the Nile. While disturbances
extended throughout the reign until within the last ten of
David's forty years, yet the nation was saved from impending
danger and was placed on a sure basis. Now it was that
David allowed his personal desires to lead him into difficulties
which followed him many years and which darkened the reign
which had promised so much. An infatuation for Bath-sheba,
wife of one of his officers, took possession of him, and caused
him to make way with her husband who stood in his way.
Like other Semitic and Oriental nations, the Hebrews were
accustomed to take more than one wife, but the religion of
Jehovah had been from the beginning a moral religion, and
the more earnest among Israel's people could but be shocked
by this action on the part of the king. Much has been made
of David's remorse, but it was not so great but that he allowed
the unscrupulous woman who had aided him in his wrong-
doing to exercise a strong influence over him throughout his
life. His sons seemed to feel no restraint upon them and
added crimes to their house. Absalom, David's favorite son,
took advantage of his father's loss of popularity to raise a
revolt against him. This was easily put down, but the death
of Absalom quite unnerved the king. Bath-sheba rested not
until she had settled the succession upon her son, Solomon.
Shortly after this decision was made known, David died, having
reigned forty years. In realizing what all these years meant
for Israel, we can never lose sight of the pioneer work of
Saul which alone made possible the more brilliant one of his
successor.
" It is not possible to overestimate what David did for
Israel : Israel as a people, as a representative of political life,
as a concrete quantity in the development of universal history,
as a nation in the fullest sense of the word, is exclusively his
work. With this he completed what Moses had begTin in
quiet and inconspicuous labors on Sinai and at Kadesh. And
all of this David created as it were out of nothing, under the
most difficult conditions conceivable, with no other means than
his own all-inspiring and all-compelling personality. . . .
" David created Israel and at the same time raised it to
462 THE world's progress.
its highest eminence; what Israel was under and through
David it never again became. And so we can easily under-
stand how the eyes of Israel rested in grateful reverence upon
this figure, and how a second David became the dream of
Israel's future.
" True, the picture of David does not lack the traits of
human frailty, which Israelitish tradition, with a truly admir-
able sincerity has neither suppressed nor palliated; but the
charm which this personality exercised over all contemporaries
without exception has not yet faded for us of later day ; who-
ever devoted himself without prejudice to the contemplation
of David's history and character cannot fail to like him. A
saint and psalm-singer, as later tradition has represented him,
he certainly was not ; but we find in him a truly noble human
figure, which, in spite of all, preserved the tenderest and most
fragrant bloom of its nature, perfect directness and simplicity;
nowhere any posing, nothing theatrical, such as is always
found in sham greatness; he always acts out what he is, but
his unspoiled nature, noble at heart, generally comes very near
to the right and good. At the same time the whole personality
is touched with a breath of genuine piety and childlike trust
in God, so that we can wholly comprehend how he appears
to tradition as the ideal ruler, the king after God's own
heart.
" This king, who did more for the worldly greatness and
earthly power of Israel than any one else, was a genuine
Israelite in that he appreciated also Israel's religious destiny:
he was no soldier-king, no conqueror and warrior of common
stamp, no ruler like any one of a hundred others, but he is
the truest incorporation of the unique character of Israel, a
unique personality in the history of the world, and we under-
stand how he could become the impersonation of an idea —
how the highest and holiest that Israel hoped for and longed
for appears at the Son of David." *
We are shocked as we read of David's cruelty to captives,
but in his ferocious treatment he was but following an instinct
common to the Semitic race. It is to be remembered that he
was but a brief time removed from the era of the Judges, when
even Samuel, the far-seeing seer, and God-fearing man, hacked
an enemy to pieces before the altar of Jehovah, to the supposed
*Cornill : Hist, of People of Israel, 83.
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 463
gratification of his God. David's faults were common to his
age, and they were not looked upon by his contemporaries as
we look upon them today, but his virtues and redeeming char-
acteristics raised him far above the majority of Israel's people,
and his reign was harked back to as most worthy in Hebrew
annals.
Solomon.
Solomon was the son of David's fourth wife— Bathsheba.
Selfish, devoid of principle and fond of intrigue, she influenced
David to recognize her son as his successor, setting aside the
right of an older son. It is not unlikely that David beUeved
Solomon the more capable of serving Israel.
Solomon had inherited his mother's selfishness and love
of display. He soon caused the death of his brother, in order
to make his crown secure. Having neither aptitude nor ability
for war, fortifications took the place of active armies. The
vassal-kingdoms which David had won were soon lost. Forts
were erected at important border places, and the city of
Jerusalem was strongly fortified.
Oriental display and absolutism were emulated by the
young king. He desired to set his kingdom on a footing with
other kingdoms of his time, and, ignoring the early aims and
mission of the Israelites, he made everything else subordinate
to the exaltation of the court and king. Commercial alliances
were made with neighboring peoples; wives were taken from
many states — petty and great. Most flattering was thought
to be the marriage alliance between the Hebrew king and a
daughter of the pharaoh of Egypt, and elaborate apartments
were provided her. In early times a king added materially to
his property and prestige by making numerous alliances of
this sort. David had deemed it best to do so and Solomon
followed the principle on a much wider scale.
Naturally ample funds were now required to meet the ex-
penses of the court, and various means were provided to secure
the necessary income. The whole kingdom was divided into
twelve districts and each was required to defray the court's
expenses for one month. Moreover, commercial enterprises
were entered upon ; toll was collected from the overland trade,
and the king himself dealt heavily in horses, which he im-
ported from Egypt and sold to the neighboring peoples at a
464 THS world's progress.
good profit. Suddenly the little nation of Israelites, so long
isolated and remote from the influences of wealth, was thrown
open to outside contact on every hand.
" Hitherto struggles within and hostility without had
rendered the Hebrew peasants almost impervious to foreign
influences; now, all at once, the bars were thrown down, and
these came rushing in like a tidal wave. The horse took the
place of the ass ; metal weapons and tools supplanted the rude
ones of flint and wood ; walled cities arose on the sites of the
primitive towns with their mud and stone hovels; the rude
barracks of David grew into a palace; the simple gathering
of followers about Saul, as he- sat under his tamarisk-tree in
Ramah, developed into a great Oriental court; luxuries un-
dreamed of before came to be regarded as necessities ; foreign
spices, apes, peacocks, ivory, precious stones and woods
aroused the curiosity and delighted the senses of the inhabi-
tants of the gay capital." *
Nations entering into commercial relations with Solomon
expected as a matter of course that their gods would be wel-
comed in the land of the Hebrews. Many of the commercial
treaties were cemented by marriage alliances, and the princesses
who came into the king's harem brought their own forms of
worship with them. Places of worship had to be provided
for them, and the idolatry of later years may be traced back
in a large measure to the laxity of this period.
The adornment of Jerusalem demanded much of the king's
attention. In place of the simple quarters which had sufficed
for David, a noble palace arose. Apartments for the queens
were needed. It has recently been insisted that instead of the
three hundred and sixty wives credited to Solomon, he had
but seventy, but a few more or less seem of little moment.
The harem rivaled that of Persia, and the cost of maintaining
so elaborate a court was out of all proportion to the resources
of the kingdom. The people were taxed to the utmost. The
Canaanitcs, who had long been permitted to live in peace by
the side of the Hebrews, were now reduced to slavery and put
at forced labor, quite as the Hebrews had been in Egypt.
Notwithstanding, many ties bound the people to their
king. They took great pride in the splendor of their capital,
"Kent : Hist, of Hebrew People, 180.
Copyright by Uiiflerwood & Underwood. X. ^
Poses of Sharox.
TH^ STORY OP THE HEBREWS. 465
and especially were they gratified by the erection of the temple
in Jerusalem. Hither David had brought the ark of the
covenant, which had been recovered from the Philistines, and
here with due ceremony the center of the kingdom had already
been made the religious center as well. It seems probable that
to Solomon the temple was but a necessary adjunct to his
court buildings. Among most ancient peoples temples were
erected in connection with the king's palace. It gave added
dignity and inspired wonder. To the masses it probably meant
much more. Certainly it grew later to be the center for their
religious enthusiasm and spirit.
Nor was Solomon's popularity based alone upon his achieve-
ments. He had a way of awakening personal popularity. He
attained a wide reputation for his so-called " wisdom." As
we follow his reckless policy of plunging his country on to
ruin, this far-famed wisdom is not at once apparent. It con-
sisted in subtlety, quick wit, ready answers and apt sayings,
so much in favor among all oriental peoples. His wisdom is
well exemplified by the stories told of the visit of the Queen
of Sheba to his court, and her tests as to the truth of his famed
gift. It is probable that this Arabian queen came to negotiate
commercial advantages for her subjects, but we are told only
the ostensible reason for her coming: to test the wisdom of
Solomon, whose fame had reached her kingdom. The dusky
queen of renowned beauty brought costly presents to the
Hebrew king, and received high honor and attention at his
court. Stories have survived of questions put to his majesty
by this queen. Two bouquets were held out before him, appar-
ently alike, yet one was just gathered from his garden, and
the other had been fashioned by the maidens of the queen.
The simple tale is told in a little poem entitled " King Solo-
mon and the Bees," and we leave the verses to complete it.
King Solomon and the Bees.
A Tale of the Talmud.
When Solomon was reigning in his glory,
Unto his throne the Queen of Sheba came,
(So in the Talmud you may read the story)
Drawn by the magic of the monarch's fame.
466 THE world's progress.
To see the splendors of his court, and bring
Some fitting tribute to the mighty king.
Nor this alone; much had her Highness heard
What flowers of learning graced the royal speech ;
What gems of wisdom dropped with every word;
What wholesome lessons he was wont to teach
In pleasing proverbs, and she wished, in sooth,
To know if Rumor spoke the simple truth.
Besides, the queen had heard (which piqued her most)
How through the deepest riddles he could spy ;
How all the curious arts that women boast
Were quite transparent to his piercing eye;
And so the queen had come — a royal guest —
To put the sage's cunning to the test.
And straight she held before the monarch's view,
In either hand, a radiant wreath of flowers;
The one, bedecked with every charming hue,
Was newly culled from Nature's choicest bowers;
The other, no less fair in every part.
Was the rare product of divinest art.
" Which is the true, and which the false ? " she said.
Great Solomon was silent. All-amazed,
Each wondering courtier shook his puzzled head,
While at the garlands long the monarch gazed,
As one who sees a miracle, and fain.
For very rapture, ne'er would speak again.
" Which is the true ? " once more the woman asked,
Pleased at the fond amazement of the king,
" So wise a head should not be hardly tasked.
Most learned liege, with such a trivial thing ! "
But still the sage was silent; it was plain
A deepening doubt perplexed the royal brain.
While thus he pondered, presently he sees,
Hard by the casement, — so the story goes, —
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 467
A little band of busy, bustling bees,
Hunting for honey in a withered rose.
The monarch smiled, and raised his royal head;
* Open the window ! "—that was all he said.
The window opened, at the king's command ;
Within the room the eager insects flew.
And sought the flowers in Sheba's dexter hand!
And so the king and all the courtiers knew
That wreath was Nature's ; and the baffled queen
Returned to tell the wonders she had seen.
My story teaches (every tale should bear
A fitting moral) that the wise may find
In trifles light as atoms in the air.
Some useful lesson to enrich the mind,
Some truth designed to profit or to please, —
As Israel's king learned wisdom from the bees!
— Saxe.
Six little boys and six little girls, all dressed alike, with
cropped heads, were led into the king's presence, and he was
asked to tell which were girls and which boys. " Bring in
basins of water," he commanded, " and bid them wash their
hands." Now in that land the girls wore short sleeves and
the boys long ones. Unthinking, the girls washed their arms
as well, but the boys washed their hands alone. So were the
spectators silently told which were which.
Such ingenious answers as these established for Solomon
his reputation for wisdom, and many of the wise sayings im-
puted to him are known now to have been the sayings of
others.
Before the king's death, murmurings were not uncommon
because of the oppressive administration, and the high-minded
of the religious body looked with grave misgivings upon the
influx of foreign gods. Even to them the whole danger was
not apparent. That was left for a period more remote to
understand.
When Solomon died, his son came forward as his successoi.
The usual custom among Semitics was for the crown to descend
468 The world's progress.
to the eldest son, but the kingship was a new institution in
Israel and the people had held to the right of electing their
king. They now gathered around Rehoboam, clamoring for
promises. They recalled that his father had taxed them
heavily and asked that he deal with them more leniently. In-
stead of answering such reasonable demands at once, the king
told them he would make reply three days later. Meanwhile
he counselled with his ministers — how should he meet the
popular demand. The older men immediately pointed out the
safer policy, but the younger ones held that he should resent
the liberty the people had taken in making any demands what-
ever, and should assure them that his demands would be even
greater than those of his father. Their folly prevailed. When
the people heard his reply, they were momentarily grieved.
Then all the tribes save two — Judah and Benjamin — ^withdrew
and vowed they would no longer support the house of David.
Solomon's son received the support of two tribes, and his
kingdom was henceforth known by the name of Judaea, while
the northern kingdom was called by the name of Israel.
Having seen the dangers assailing the united kingdom, we
realize at once the recklessness of the policy that divided it
and set two kingdoms with lessened strength to hold their own
among their neighbors.
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 469
CHAPTER XII.
Aeter the Division oe the Kingdom.
While the arrogance of Rehoboam and the extravagances
of Solomon were the direct causes of the disunion, yet other
agencies had long been at work to bring it about. In the first
place, natural land features divided the ridge on the west side
of the Jordan into two distinct parts. Any permanent union
was not probable. Again, the northern tribes inhabited the
more prosperous district. Their resources were greater; and
with the jealousies that always manifested themselves among
the tribes, it was hardly to have been expected that they would
indefinitely consent to be ruled by Judean kings. Moreover, dur-
ing the reign of Solomon, Judah had been exempt from taxa-
tion. Into a Judean city had poured the wealth of the kingdom,
while the hand of oppression, so heavy elsewhere, was unfelt
alone in this province. Indignation had apparently reached a
high pitch before Solomon's death, yet spokesmen for the north-
em tribes met with the new king and made a simple and reason-
able demand for reduced taxes in turn for allegiance. A
statesman might have held the kingdom intact, yet it is scarcely
probable that union would have indefinitely endured. The
royal messenger sent to reconcile the northern tribes after their
withdrawal was so speedily stoned to death that the king fled
for safety to Jerusalem. Jeroboam, an experienced general,
was elected king of Israel — the northern kingdom, and hos-
tilities between the two kingdoms were inevitable.
Judah was somewhat protected — on the north by the new-
formed state, on tlie east by the river and Dead Sea, on the
south by the desert. On the other hand, Israel, with her
traversable plains, lay open to approach from every side, and
she it was who had to bear the brunt of outside attack for the
next two centuries.
A comparison of the two states at the outset shows Israel
io have been first in natural resources, size and population;
to have been second in unity and centralized government.
Judah. with her limited area, scarcity of water, absence of
470 THS wori^d's progress.
fertile soil and scanty population, had marked advantage in
her unity and hereditary kingship. There were ten tribes to
be pacified in the north — only two in the south. In Israel the
jealousies were so strong that it was the work of a moment
for an influential prince to assassinate the reigning king and
usurp the crown.
Judah was crippled shortly after the division by an in-
vasion of Egyptian forces. They penetrated into Israel as
well, but treasure was greatest in Jerusalem. Three hundred
golden shields, made by Solomon for his guards, were taken,
together with the rich decoration of the temple. Rehoboam
soon after had the ornaments of gold replaced by others of
bronze, so the splendor of the temple was not greatly changed.
For some time hostilities continued between the Hebrew
kingdoms. Then danger from Syria, a rising state with
Damascus at its head, made an alliance desirable to both kings.
After the disunion, Jeroboam felt that it would be mani-
festly unsafe to allow the people of Israel to go to Jerusalem
to celebrate their national festivals, lest they might be led to
return to Judah's king. Consequently he established two
sanctuaries, one at Bethel and one at Dan, instructing people
to worship at the one nearest them. He caused a golden bull
to be placed before the altar of each, thus violating the com-
mandment forbidding graven images. Perhaps in so doing
the king was merely symbolizing the strength of Jehovah. At
an earlier period this would have been less objectionable, but
the people had grown somewhat accustomed to worship with-
out symbols, and this was plainly a retrogression. The im-
ageless worship of Jehovah was one of its distinctive features,
lifting it above that of surrounding peoples.
While prophets of a later day denounced the act of Jero-
boam, the priests of his own day were too near the change to
discern its grave dangers.
The kingdoms which centered at Damascus began to reach
out for territory, and harassed Israel until the imperial growth
of Assyria caused the withdrawal of Syrian troops to protect
their own land. Left alone, the northern kingdom developed
her own resources and attained a prosperity rivaling the time
of Solomon. Meanwhile, Judah had been sheltered from out-
side wars and less affected by religious orders.
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 47I
The period intervening between the fall of Damascus and
the wars of Tiglath-Pileser III. has been aptly called " Israel's
Indian Summer." The outlying territories of David came
once more under Hebrew rule, divided between the kingdoms
of the north and south. Commerce, long abandoned, sprang
up and rivaled its tide in Solomon's reign. Unfortunately,
the social life of the people lacked its earlier simplicity, and
there were tendencies within the kingdom itself which pointed
to the disintegration of the state as surely as did the forces
that were soon to approach its walled cities.
First, recent wars had fallen most heavily upon the middle
class. Small farmers, returning from campaigns of defense
of Hebrew borders, found their estates run down, sometimes
dismantled. Having no means of building them up again,
they frequently sank into the peasantry. In periods of re-
action, when property and commercial activity returned, it
was the wealthy who were benefited, while the poor became
poorer yet. In this way the middle class had practically dis-
appeared. Such a loss would be serious enough to a state,
but this was by no means all. The simplicity of living which
had characterized the early years of the Hebrew nation had
given way to extravagance and reckless waste on the part of
the rich, throwing into powerful contrast the condition of the
poor. The humbler classes were oppressed — not by foreign
foes, but by the wealthy of their own state, and abandonment
of any sympathy between social classes was one of the most
alarming tendencies.
The religious life of the country was at a low ebb. By
the masses Jehovah was still regarded as God of the Hebrews
— 3. tribal God, quite as Baal was god of the Phoenicians, or
Asshur of the Assyrians. It was taught by the priests that
Jehovah would cause the Hebrews to win against their enemies,
since only by their triumphs was he honored. He was wor-
shipped much as were the gods of other nations. Licentious
customs borrowed from neighboring peoples, profaned the very
temples, and undermined earlier religious simplicity.
It was such a state of affairs that called forth the utterances
of Amos and Hosea, from whose addresses we learn of social
conditions in their day. In some hearts the religious mission of
the Hebrews still remained the most sacred of all trusts. When
472 th^ world's progress.
evils of their age threatened to engulf them, certain clear-
sighted ones were moved to rouse the people — to bring home
to them the consequences sure to overtake their kingdom un-
less these glaring wrongs were corrected.
Such a spirit was Amos, a simple, clear-minded shepherd,
dwelling on the borderland between Israel and Judah, and
closely observant of affairs in both states. Inspired to voice
his protest against the corruption of his people, he left his
flocks and journeyed to Bethel, the religious center of Israel.
Reaching the temple on a feast day, he was confronted by
riotous music and unseemly merriment, desecrating the
temple itself. It was then he created a sensation by his pas-
sionate address, fragments of which are preserved to us in the
biblical book which bears his name. Instead of offending at
once by quick reproof, and thus losing a chance to he heard,
he began by predicting misfortunes certain to overtake neigh-
boring peoples because of their misdoings. In this way he
won the attention and approval of an audience who liked to
be told that they were the Chosen People, and Jehovah was
with them, and that — apparently no matter what they did —
he would not permit them to fail. Then Amos launched into
the iniquity of Israel, and prophesied disasters sure to befall
her. He uttered a new truth when he said that since the
Hebrews had received special blessings from Jehovah, even
more strictly would they be held to account for their short-
comings; that as their light had been greater than that be-
stowed upon their neighbors, so would the requirements be
greater for them than for others.
" Hear ye this word which I take up against you, even a
lamentation, O house of Israel.
" The virgin of Israel is fallen; she shall no more rise up;
she is forsaken upon her land ; there is none to raise her up.
For thus saith the Lord God: The city that went out by a
thousand shall leave an hundred, and that which went forth
by an hundred shall leave ten, to the house of Israel.
" For thus saith the Lord unto the house of Israel : Seek
ye me, and ye shall live; but seek not Bethel nor enter into
Gilgal; for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel
shall come to nought.
" Seek the Lord and ye shall live; lest he break out like
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 473
fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none
to quench It. Ye who turn judgment to wormwood,
and leave off righteousness in the earth, seek him that maketh
the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death
into mormng and maketh the day dark with night; that calleth
for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face
of the earth: The Lord is his name.
" Forasmuch therefore as your treading is ui^n the poor
and ye take from him burdens of wheat: ye have built houses of
hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted
pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drink wine of them.
"For I know your manifold transgressions and your
mighty sins; they afflict the just, they take a bribe, and they
turn aside the poor in the gate from their right . .
" Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the
mountains of Samaria, which are named chief of the nations,
to whom the house of Israel came!
"Ye that put far away the evil day, and cause the seat
of violence to come near; that lie upon beds of ivory, and
stretch themselves upon their couches, and eat the lambs out
of the flock, and the calves out of the midst of the stall ; that
chant to the sound of the viol, and invent to themselves instru-
ments of music like David; that drink wine in bowls, and
anoint themselves with the chief ointments; but they are not
grieved for the affliction of Joseph.
" Therefore now shall they go captive with the first that
go captive, and the banquet of them that stretched themselves
shall be removed." — Amos 5 and 6.
Not long after, Hosea came forward with the startling
and altogether unpleasant message that Jehovah was not the
God of the Hebrews alone, but of the whole world. That he
was a God of righteousness, and rewarded it wherever found,
and punished evil doing, regardless nf the doer. He touched
a new chord when he taught that God was love, full of com-
passion and plenteous in mercy. Heretofore law had been the
pivot around which religion centered, and the ritual was ob-
served and the sacrifice provided. These attended to, Jehovah
was supposed to be appeased. Hosea taught that the sacrifice
of burnt offerings availed nothing — that the sacrifice demanded
was " an humble and a contrite heart."
1—32
474 This world's progress.
A new era was dawning for the Hebrew faith, and truth-
divining men grasped at fundamental principles, applicable
alike to the whole world. It is not surprising that long years
elapsed before such broad conceptions sank deep into the hearts
of the Hebrew race. One of their kingdoms was scattered to
the winds before these were comprehended, save, indeed, by
a few, far-sighted minds; the other kingdom passed through
the humiliation of captivity and exile and through these vicissi-
tudes learned the truths from actual experience.
" Hear ye this, O priests; and harken, ye house of Israel;
and give ear, O house of the king; for judgment is toward
you, because ye have been a snare on Mizpah, and a net spread
upon Tabor. . . .
" The pride of Israel doth testify to his face : therefore
shall Israel and Ephraim fall in their iniquity ; Judah also shall
fall with them. They shall go with their flocks and with
their herds to seek the Lord but they shall not find him; he
hath withdrawn himself from them. They have dealt
treacherously against the Lord : for they have begotten strange
children : now shall a mouth devour them with their portions.
" O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee ? O Judah, what
shall I do unto thee ? for your goodness is as a morning cloud,
and as the early dew it goeth away. . . .
" For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice ; and the know-
ledge of God more than burnt offerings. But they like men
have transgressed the covenant : there have they dealt treacher-
ously against me. . . .
" Israel hath cast off the thing that is good : the enemy
shall pursue him. They have set up kings, but not by me:
they have made princes, and I knew it not : of their silver and
their gold have they made them idols, that they may be cut off.
For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirl-
wind : it hath no stalk : the bud shall yield no meal : if so be
it yield, the strangers shall swallow it up. . . .
" They sacrifice flesh for the sacrifices of mine offerings,
and eat it; but the Lord accepteth them not; now will he
remember their iniquity and visit their sins : they shall return
to Egypt. For Israel hath forgotten his Maker, and buildeth
temples; and Judah hath multiplied fenced cities: but I will
THE STORY OF THE) HEBREWS. 475
send a fire upon his cities, and it shall devour the palaces
thereof. . . .
"Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity;
ye have eaten the fruit of lies : because thou didst trust in thy
way, in the multitude of thy mighty men. .
" When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called
my son out of Eg>'pt. As they called them, so they went from
them: they sacrificed unto Baalim, and burned incense to
graven images. I taught Ephraim also to go, taking them
by the arms; but they knew not that I healed them. I drew
them with cords of a man, with bands of love : and I was to
them as they that take off the yoke on their jaws, and I laid
meat unto them. . . .
" O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself ; but in me is thine
help.
" O Israel, return unto the Lord thy God, for thou hast
fallen by thine iniquity." — Hosea, 5-14 cliapters.
End of Israel.
About 745 B. c. Tiglath-Pileser III. began his westward
conquest, incorporating great areas into his already spacious
empire. Heavy tribute was exacted from provinces so an-
nexed. The amount required of the northern kingdom — now
known by the name of its new capital, Samaria — was so great
that the state soon drooped under the load. Egypt, desiring
also a foothold in western Asia, employed agents to stir the
conquered countries against Assyria, promising aid in case they
would revolt, but meaning only to appropriate territory for
the Nile kingdom should confusion make it possible.
Because the tribute was grievous in Samaria, the party
opposed to paying it desired an alliance with Egypt. States-
men saw that such a movement was ill-timed, but their voices
were drowned in the multitude. In 735 b. c. a coalition was
formed by the sea-coast states against Assyria, and the revolt-
ing states refused the yearly tribute. Before the allies could
rally, Tiglath-Pileser III. reached the west by forced marches,
and defeated each state separately. Much land was laid waste,
captives were taken, and Hosea, deemed loyal to the Assyrian
government, was made king of Samaria. For ten years the
annual levy was paid, but upon the death of the great Assyrian
47^ THE world's progress.
conqueror, Hosea yielded to the popular clamor for a revolt.
He himself was soon taken prisoner, but Samaria prepared
for a siege. It lasted nearly three years, during which time
intense suffering afflicted the city. At last the capital fell to
Sargon, who destroyed it, taking 27,290 of its noblest citizens
captives, deporting them to distant points. An Assyrian gov-
ernor was placed over the desolate land and Israel ceased to
exist longer as a state.
The Hebrew chronicler tells us that those taken into cap-
tivity took on the religions of the people among whom they
settled. Generally speaking this was no doubt true. On the
other hand, traditions have come down from other sources
concerning families who continued to worship Jehovah as
before. However, after a few generations, their descendants
no doubt drifted away from the faith of the Hebrews.
Thus ends the story of the ten tribes who broke away
from the kingdom of Solomon's son and organized their own
northern kingdom. While enduring prophecies and messages
have been contributed by members of these tribes, their king-
dom presented no such example as did the smaller state of
Judah during the closing years of her national life. More
accessible to outside influences, more ready to compromise,
Israel's early religious fervor gradually abated. Some ex-
planation for her inglorious end is to be found in the physical
geography of her country.
Before the fall of Samaria, Judah .enjoyed years of material
prosperity, with varying fortune. Shortly before the siege
of the northern capital, Ahaz, a mere boy, succeeded to the
Judah throne. Inexperienced in the affairs of state, he was
nevertheless reluctant to heed the counsels of older advisers.
Assyria was threatening like a huge monster on the eastern
horizon and the only possible way to check her approach lay
in organizing a strong coalition of the sea-coast states. Syria,
instead of taking the initiative, joined with Israel for the pur-
pose of invading Judea, and dividing the spoils between them.
This fatal mistake led ultimately to the destruction of both
aggressive countries. King Ahaz of Judaea, against the wise
and urgent advice of Isaiah, offered allegiance to the Assyrian
emperor in turn for protection against his neighbors, selling
his countrymen into tribute slavery and despoiling the temple
ThS story OJ* The HEBREWS. 477
of its treasure for gifts of submission. Thus it happened that
while Damascus and Samaria fell before the armies of Assyria.
Jerusalem was not approached, nor Judaea invaded, although
her king became a vassal of Tiglath-Pileser III.
Under such trying conditions as these Isaiah came into
national view and evinced qualities which have given him
rank with the great statesmen of the world. Denouncing
social wrongs, he was soon drawn into the affairs of the state.
Taking no part in the politics of his day, he stood steadfastly
for fidelity to the ideals of his race and faith. He appre-
ciated the position that his country ought to occupy, knowing
well that as a political power she could not hope to cope with
even the secondary nations around her. Only by holding her-
self aloof from material considerations, and clinging tena-
ciously to the religious principles earlier evolved, could she
come safely through the critical times encompassing her.
Isaiah taught that it was for Judah to purge her worship of
idolatrous practices which had drifted into it and to go for-
ward with unfaltering faith in the ultimate dominance of right
over wrong, justice over injustice. However he spoke to deaf
ears, for the ideals for which he stood, the moderate measures
for which he pleaded, were unpopular with the people at this
time.
For some years Judaea paid her tribute, thankful to be left
undisturbed. Gradually a party sprang up which opposed
the tribute payment, and during the reign of Hezekiah its
adherents became numerous enough to control the policy of
their nation. Babylonia was secretly planning a revolt which
she desired to make general; accordingly ambassadors were
dispatched to the court of Hezekiah — ostensibly to congratu-
late him on his recent recovery, but really to win him to this
revolt, and to estimate the resources of his kingdom. About
702 B. c. all was ripe for the planned revolt, and Assyrian
officials were refused the tribute. Sargon was dead and it
was not expected that his son would prove so successful a
warrior as he had been. But no sooner had news of the revolt
reached Sennacherib than he pushed west, and reached the
coast before the allies were prepared. Meeting them sepa-
rately, they quickly melted away before his disciplined troops.
Cities of Phoenicia and the Philistines surrendered, and armies
47^ The wori^d's progress.
spread into the valleys of Judaea, surrounding Jerusalerti itself.
Hezekiah was terrified into offering heavy tribute, stripping
the temple of its remaining ornaments to provide the sum
exacted by the emperor as the price of peace. Cities around
about were being laid waste and their inhabitants carried into
captivity.
In spite of the booty sent him, Sennacherib felt that his
victory over Jerusalem was incomplete, and turning to meet
an Egyptian relief force approaching Judaea from the south,
Sennacherib sent word to Hezekiah that, unless the city gates
swung open to him on his return, he would storm its walls.
It had been a grievous matter to provide the treasure al-
ready required by the Assyrian, and consternation filled Jeru-
salem, where little hope of holding out against the veteran
troops could longer be entertained. With characteristic calm,
Isaiah declared that deliverance for Zion would be forth-com-
ing, and he took occasion to bring home to the people their
deep corruption and idolatrous wanderings, while safety for
them lay in devotion to Jehovah. For once the terrified
Hebrews were ready to harken to any counsel that carried
with it a promise of hope.
The fate of Sennacherib's army is well known: how en-
camped in a fever-breeding swamp, it was stricken in a night.
The few who escaped the plague, set out at once on a home-
ward march, and Jerusalem was left unmolested. As was
their custom, the Hebrews attributed their escape to direct
intervention of Jehovah in their behalf. The beautiful poem
of Byron touching the incident, expresses well their convic-
tions :
Destruction of Sennacherib.
The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold.
And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold;
And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the sea.
When the blue waves roll nightly on deep Galilee.
Like the leaves of the forest when summer is green,
That host with their banners at sun-set was seen;
Like the leaves of the forest when autumn hath blown.
That host on the morrow lay withered and strewn.
THE STORY OF THE HEBREWS. 479
For the angel of death spread his wings on the blast.
And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed;
And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved — and forever grew still.
And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide,
But through it there rolled not the breath of his pride;
And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf,
And cold as the spray of the rock beating surf.
And there lay the rider, distorted and pale,
With the dew on his brow and the rust on his mail ;
And the tents were all silent, the banners alone.
The lances unlifted, the trumpet unblown.
And the widows of Asshur are loud in their wail.
And the idols are broke in the temple of Baal;
And the might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword,
Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord!
— -Byron.
Hezekiah was so affected by his marvellous deliverance,
that he listened to the voice of Isaiah throughout the remainder
of his days, and instigated both social and religious reforms.
These were so radical that ere long a reaction set in. All
religious practices were again tolerated and Isaiah and his
followers were forbidden to preach to the people. This forced
the prophet to give permanency to his messages by writing
them down for future generations. It was now that the book
of Deuteronomy was produced, known later as the Book of
Law. Many of the rules therein laid down had cause for being
in the conditions of the times. For example, every locality
had possessed its own peculiar form of sacrifice and its own
priesthood. To insure regularity of worship it was now pro-
vided that religious festivals should be solemnized only at the
temple of Jerusalem, which city should be the religious center
of the land. When in the time of Josiah another period of
religious reform set in, this Book of Law, or Deuteronomy, was
discovered in the temple where it had lain unnoticed. This
gave occasion for a complete overturning of social and religious
customs. As in previous periods of prosperity, the Hebrews
48o THS wori^d's progre;ss.
had sunk into reckless extravagances and hopeless poverty;
into idolatrous worship and gross immorality. The reforms
instituted by Josiah were designed to recall the masses to paths
outlined for them by their greatest teachers and prophets.
" The full significance of this sweeping innovation can be
appreciated only by a comparison with the practices which it
supplanted. Hitherto sacrifices appear to have been offered
anywhere and by any one; in fact, every animal slain was
regarded as shared with the deity. At every town there was
a high place to which the people went, not only on feast days,
but whenever they wished, through the priest, to have a dis-
puted case settled, or to ascertain the divine will respecting
their private matter. Religion entered into all their life. The
enactments of Deuteronomy swept away the high places, placed
a ban upon private sacrifice, and restricted all offerings to the
Temple. A sharp distinction was thereby drawn between the
laity and the priests, between secular and holy things. Re-
ligion henceforth became something formal, above and apart,
rather than in all which concerned the nation or individual.
Conventionality took the place of the old freedom and joyous-
ness which had so often degenerated into laxness. The end
desired by the reformers was attained. The narrowing of
religion saved it from the shallowness of heathenism. The
Jehovah who was worshipped in the Temple with jealously
guarded forms was not in danger of being degraded to a level
with the surrounding deities. That which henceforth consti-
tuted the Jewish church was divorced from the state, and so
survived the downfall of the nation. Unfortunately the nar-
rowing process did not cease after the crisis was past, so that
its later effects were deplorable; but, measured in the light of
existing circumstances, the reformation of Josiah marks the
beginning of that movement which ultimately resulted in the
complete elimination of the practical heathenism which had
long threatened the extinction of the pure worship of
Jehovah." *
After the fall of Nineveh, Egyptian forces attempted to
cross Palestine on their way to the east. Their progress was
forbidden by the Judean king. In the battle which ensued
Josiah was slain. This has been called the " most tragic event
>Hist. of the Hebrew People : Vol. II, 180.
THE STORY OV THE HEBREWS. 481
in Hebrew history." In the crude judgment of his day, the
masses regarded his death as punishment for the destruction
of the high places throughout the land. These were re-estab-
lished, and for the moment it seemed that all the results of the
late reformation were s\vept away.
Egypt held Judah in tribute for three or four years. Then
Babylonia defeated the Egyptian army and appropriated its
conquests for the new Chaldean empire.
About 597 B. c, tribute having been refused Nebuchadnez-
zar, he marched against Jerusalem and took the flower of her
people into captivity. Those who were left foolishly planned
a second revolt. Jeremiah filled the place once occupied by
Isaiah, and he denounced the folly of the popular party with
great force, vividly picturing the ruin a revolt would cause.
His very life was in danger because of the boldness of his
counsel, and at times he was held prisoner. Shortly again
the armies of Babylonia stood before the walls of Jerusalem.
The great king remembered the history of centuries wherein
the resources of Assyria and Babylonia had been squandered
in holding the western states. He resolved to settle the matter
for all time, and the city of Jerusalem was utterly laid waste,
while its inhabitants were for the most part deported to Baby-
lonia. Jeremiah was left free to go wherever he chose, and
he remained with the poor peasants who were left to till the
soil. Shortly after the stricken band migrated to Egypt where
they soon lost their identity.
After the fall of Jerusalem in 586 b. c, the perpetuation
of the Hebrew faith was left solely to those thousands of cap-
tives who had been sent to Babylon. Of all who had pe©pled
the fair land of Israel and the hills of Judah, they alone re-
mained to hold fast the inheritances of their fathers and to
preserve the ancient faith. During the seventy years of their
captivity it was the remembrance of their once proud nation
and beloved Jerusalem, together with the hope of again re-
turning to its hills, that sustained those stricken hearts and
gave them courage. Living as much as possible to themselves,
they held to their peculiar customs and in some ways were not
materially changed by the enforced exile. However their re-
ligious conceptions underwent a marked change, and the ex-
periences of the exile itself brought them finally into a fuller
realization of the faith they had long followed blindly.
DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIONS
IN PART L
Distant View of the Pyramids.
, Ti'-^/^^^ leading from Cairo to the Pyramids is often spoken of as
the high road. Were it not built up in this way, communication would
be cut oft during the period of the inundation.
Camels, "ships of the desert," are commonly used in Egypt. Arabs
populate the land and are clamorous in their demands for coins from
travelers.
Great Pyramid, Sphinx and Temple of Armachis.
The great Pyramids had stood approximately 800 years when Abraham
first came into the Delta ; they had existed approximately 1500 years when
Moses led the Israelites out of the land of bondage. The largest of the
three is indeed stupendous, its base covering thirteen acres. In the fore-
ground of the picture is seen the ruins of the Temple of Armachis.
Like the Pyramids, the Sphinx has stood wrapped in mysterious silence
these thousand years. The form of the Sphinx was very common in
ancient Egypt, it being a symbolic representation of the king. The body
of the lion symbolized his strength, or power; the human face was a
portrait of the monarch. Shifting sands have accumulated to the breast
of the body — said to be 140 feet long. Of the huge proportions one may
judge from the fact that should a man stand upon the ear of the Sphinx
his hand could not reach the top of the head. A little chapel of com-
paratively recent date has been placed between the paws of the lion.
Tourists Scaling the Great Pyramid.
The Great Pyramid was originally covered with blocks of the hardest
granite. This casing was removed by the Mohammedans for use in build-
ing the mosque of Cairo. Thus removed, the blocks of building stone of
which the huge pile is for the most part composed, were left exposed.
Laid down in the form of steps, tourists today are able to climb to the
very top. To be sure, some of these steps are shoulder high, but with
much pulling by guides in front and some pushing from those behind, one
may ascend in about half an hour. The splendid view over the valley and
neighboring desert amply repay one for the discomforts of the climb.
Dromos (Columns) and Second Pylon (Gateway) Temple
OF Karnak.
The great temple of Karnak was begun by Seti I., and was enlarged
by many succeeding Pharaohs. An avenue of rams led to the gateway,
which was the last portion to be completed. Crossing a court, one came
at length to the temple itself.
The figures and letters carved on the stone may be plainly seen in this
picture.
Beautiful Island of Philae and the Nile.
This templed island of Philae, known sometimes as "the pearl of
Egypt," lies uppermost of a group of islands forming the first cataract
Isis was the local deity and to her a temple was built in remote times.
Recently a great dam has been constructed near Philae to insure a larger
supply of water for the valley. It has been estimated that $13,000,000 will
483
484 DESCRIPTIONS O^ ILLUSTRATIONS IN PART I.
accrue to Egypt annually by this means, but the island of Philae, with its
beautiful temple, is thereby doomed. Indignant protests have been made
from lovers of the beautiful in many lands, but the English government
has shown itself more determined to insure the prompt payment of in-
terest upon its bonds than to preserve monxunents of antiquity.
Harem Window and Court.
As is well known, in all Mohammedan countries, women pass their
lives in closest seclusion. Their quarters are provided in the upper story
of the house, the windows being small indeed. Seldom going out, living
their years in idleness, it is small wonder that these unfortunate creatures
often resort to intrigues to absorb their interest
Winged Lion.
These symbolic animals in stone were stationed at the portals of the
royal palace and sometimes guarded the palaces of the wealthy in Assyria.
The lion's body symbolized strength, the wings of the eagle, swiftness;
the human head, human intelligence. It was believed that evil spirits
would pause before such emblems of majesty, nor dare to enter.
Musicians and Attendants in the Garden of
Asshurbanipal.
After the war was over, the king, satiated with booty and slaughter,
sought the quieter pleasures of the banquet. This was frequently served
in the royal garden, while musicians dispensed sweet strains of music.
To make more animated the joyous occasion, the head of the defeated
king or general was sometimes suspended from a nearby tree, so that the
Assyrian ruler might exult over his own triumph as he drank his wine.^
Damascus Sword-maker.
The swords of Damascus have always been famous. The ancient
sword-makers understood a secret process of tempering steel which ren-
dered it very pliable and at the same time imparted to it astonishing
strength.
The River Jordan.
The word Jordan means "the down-comer," and truly a river which
drops 3,000 feet in a course of 150 miles is indeed a "descender." In the
spring the stream is brown and muddy, heavily charged as it is with
debris from the mountains. Ships never journey far up or down the
river. Below the level of the sea, the climate is hot and sultry and the
region full of malaria.
Harbor of Jappa.
Jappa is the old Joppa of Bible times. It is almost the only approach
to a seaport that Palestine can claim, yet even here large boats must
remain out in deep waters, and travelers for the Holy Land who enter
in this way must climb down the side of the steamer and be rowed to
shore in small boats. The sea is usually very rough at this point, adding
to the general discomfort of the situation for travelers.
Roses of Sharon.
Palestine is beautiful with flowers in the spring. Narcissus, the "roses
of Sharon," and Iris, "the lilies of the valley," grow in profusion over the
foothills.
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